Georgia Humane Society

2011-08-30T13:53:00.010-04:00

THE GEORGIA HUMANE SOCIETY NEEDS YOUR
HELP WITH FIGHTING CRUELTY IN GEORGIA

Each year in Georgia hundreds of animal cruelty/abuse cases go ignored simply because many counties in Georgia do not have the resources to to see that these cases are prosecuted. The Georgia Humane Society has been instrumental in assisting areas that need help with cruelty cases and seeing to it that those that abuse, mistreat and neglect animals are brought to justice and punished for their crimes. Too many dogs, cats and horses are abused and neglected in GA and although there are laws that prohibit these cruel acts, many areas need help. You can help us help those without a voice by supporting Georgia Humane Society with our mission to put and end to the abuse.

Above: Georgia Humane Society rescuers assists with dog-fighting raid in a rural GA county that has no animal control agency to deal with this issue.

Dogs living in inhumane conditions in Georgia puppy mills is one of the complaints that the Georgia Humane Society receives on a regular basis. Most of these type operations are mainly located in rural counties where animal control facilities are extremely limited, or there is no animal control agency available at all to address this issue.

Left: "Noodle" (and babies)

and "CiCI" were living in cramped, unsanitary conditions and being over bred at a puppy mill in North Georgia where over 300 dogs were seized, rescued, received medical attention and were adopted into loving homes thanks to the assistance of the Georgia Humane Society.

The number of equine cruelty and neglect cases have increased in recent years and the Georgia Humane Society has been able to assist with these cases as well. With a reliable network of equine rescuers, our organization has helped place neglected horses into foster care where they are cared for and received needed medical attention until they can be placed in permanent loving homes.

Right: "Pedro's" story ended sadly, unfortunately, and his abuser almost walked away unpunished because the animal control agency in this rural GA county was not familiar with how to prosecute abusers. Georgia Humane Society was able to assist in this case and Pedro's abuser is now in jail serving time for this horrific crime.

Often times, the cruelty and neglect cases that

the Georgia Humane Society is notified about to assist with have been reported to local enforcement; however, in most Georgia counties, there are no animal cruelty officers trained to deal with these situations so the suffering continues until the Georgia Humane Society takes on an active role in resolving the problem. Roughly 75% of the cruelty and neglect complaints that our organization receives are from concerned citizens whose requests for looking into these situations go ignored. In many cases, the Georgia Humane Society will be the only agency in GA that will step in and see to it that these cases are properly investigated and abusers are prosecuted.

Above: "Snowball" and "Reba" were with a group of 28 dogs that a breeder in GA penned up and left to starve in a remote area on the property and was the breeder's method of "doing away with breed stock that no longer served a purpose". This abuse case had been reported more than 3 times to authorities that ignored the situation until the Georgia Humane Society became involved. These two dogs were eventually treated medically, spayed and neutered and adopted into loving homes.

Georgia's pets deserve better and the Georgia Humane Society

has found loving homes for thousands of abandoned, neglected

and abused pets and has been the driving force behind seeking

justice for many pets that have fallen victim to abuse and neglect crimes.

With your support, the Georgia Humane Society can continue to be the voice for so many pets that need and deserve our help. By supporting our mission to fight animal cruelty, you can help give these wonderful animals a chance at a better life.

Their lives literally depend on your support. So many others have already let them down. You can help make Georgia a better place for so many abused, neglected and abandoned pets by making your tax deductible contribution to the Georgia Humane Society today.

Just click on the Georgia Humane Society's link here:

Donate To Help The Georgia Humane Society Fight Pet Abuse and then click on the "Donation" button on the Georgia Humane Society's website to make your contribution and help make Georgia a safe place for the dogs, cats and horses that deserve a life without abuse and neglect.

All donors will be updated quarterly with the cruelty and neglect cases that the Georgia Humane Society has assisted with around the state so you can see how your donations have helped to save lives. The Georgia Humane Society is a 501(c)(3) registered charity and relies strictly on donations from the public and grants from charitable foundations and does not receive any funding from state or federal agencies.

A day in the life

2011-06-05T16:33:00.004-04:00

Last week was a tough week for me in what I call the "dog world". Got a call from an animal shelter who needed food, not to mention someone to save dogs and cats from death, low and behold, it was my shelter, that of the county I live in. I thought, oh, no, that does not happen here in Fayette, that is in more rural towns, blah, blah, blah. Well ALL the runs were full on Friday when we got there with the food. We took pictures of some of the doggies and kitties, posted on my Facebook Wall thinking surely someone would come forward. Disappointed again, nothing was adopted from there yesterday. I know in my heart we can only save one dog or cat at a time, but, it is those of us that go in there and have to look them in the eyes and know because one has a skin issue, attitude problem or whatever else comes up they will die. AND, they did not ask to be here. Well after that, on Saturday we drove to adoptions and it was hot out. We did not adopt one little kitten not to mention a precious pup, no, we had more people coming to us to drop off their dogs just throw out due to various reasons. My sadness runs deep, almost wondering if there is counseling available for those of us who see this everyday..........on the way home I had a good cry, came in the door to all my furbabies (yes, rescues) kissing me and crawling all over me. It was wonderful, they are the reasons I do this. The moral to my ramblings, because, as you all know, I am NO writer this is a plea for help either your local shelter, or your local humane society or if nothing else~donate dollars to your favorite, after all money is tight in rescue. I guess it is true. Tomorrow is another day, well for me and my furbabies not those in the shelter that their time is truly UP.

All of the pictures I have posted on my blog are of those I have fostered. There is nothing like the love you get from these babies.

Libby

2011-04-20T17:27:00.013-04:00

In March of 2010, I met Libby. She was a plump white and gray tabby with stunning green eyes who was laid back and sweet. I assumed she was another rescue from a high kill shelter or perhaps an owner found themselves struggling and had to surrender her. I was wrong. I soon learned that Libby and her two friends wound up at a vet clinic in Newnan, GA where their owner had decided she wanted them euthanized. For what reason? She didn't want to care for them anymore. Well, when you want to euthanize a healthy and adoptable pet it isn't euthanasia---it's killing. The vet was shocked and contacted us about rescuing this gang of three. When I first heard this story, my jaw dropped. If you aren't prepared to take care of a living breathing creature for the duration of their life, then don't get one. There are millions of Libby's out there that aren't lucky enough to be rescued. They wind up in an animal control and then most of them end up being killed. Their lives snuffed out prematurely, because we as a society have failed them. I was grateful that the vet refused to kill them and contacted us to help give them another chance at finding the home that they deserved.

Libby and her friend Gabe went up to our adoption center straight from the vet. We estimated Libby to be about 2 and Gabe to be about 5. Gabe was a huge black cat that had been declawed and he was adopted quickly. The third member of the trio, Cleo, was a 13-14 year old senior! Upon rescue, Michelle (GHS President) decided that she would be what we call a "sanctuary" cat so Donna took her in. We simply didn't feel right about putting this old girl in our adoption center. It's stressful! Being abandoned by your family only to be placed in a new and strange situation with tons of other unfamiliar animals is stressful (especially for a senior pet!) We didn't want to do that to her. She went immediately to Donna's where she is living the good life. Donna says all she wants to do is eat and sleep and cuddle!

So with two of the three happy and content, this left Libby. She just happened to arrive at the start of kitten season and anyone that looked at her left with a kitten. Libby spent the summer hanging out with me at the adoption center. She ignored the kittens, would occasionally interact with the other cats, but for the most part just wanted to jump up and down on the cat tree and stretch her legs. She bonded with a few of the other female cats, but soon enough they got adopted. I've seen hundreds of cats go through our center, but Libby was the only one who would take walks with me. You can see in the picture on the left she is waiting for me to get with the program and let her out. As soon as I would open the center door, Libby would walk with me and carelessly meander up and down the aisles. She'd walk by huge barking dogs, excited kids, and dumbfounded people. I think it speaks immensely about her personality that she can just casually walk up and down the aisles of Petsmart. Being so plump, this is good exercise too!

By the end of the summer and with no applications on Libby, we decided to give her a break. She went to foster care where she spent 8 months lounging around. Donna often updated me on Libby's antics of pawing the dogs when they got too close, or jumping up on her counter to see what she was cooking. Well, we finally had room at the center so this month she returned to the Petsmart on Howell Mill Road. This time, I know Libby's family is out there looking for her. She deserves the BEST home.

The home I picture for Libby is with a loving family that will let her spend her days lounging around. Libby is pretty independent and would be fine as a solo pet or with others. She gets along fine with dogs and cats as long as they don't bother her. One of our adoption center volunteers, Mary Courtney, wrote this about Libby:

"Libby is such a sweet girl and you can tell that she's been betrayed in the past. But she is ready to open up her heart to you. You will be able to see it when you look into her beautiful green eyes, and see her looking meaningfully back at you. She's my favorite kitty in the adoption center, someone please help give Libby the life she deserves!"

I just want Libby to have her happy ending. Take one look into her beautiful green eyes and I guarantee you will be sold. For more information on adopting Libby please click here. And remember, your pets depend on you for love and care. There are too many pets being killed in our shelters for people to just abandon them.

4 Days With Sissy

2011-03-31T17:06:00.022-04:00

A few weeks ago, Michelle (GHS President) rescued two special needs pets that need lots of TLC. One was Sissy, a ~5 month old medium hair Calico, who is missing a foot. Fulton County Animal Services called us about this kitty, and asked us to step in. How could we say no? After some x-rays and a trip to our special vet, we learned that Sissy's foot was probably stuck in some sort of trap and her foot came off in an effort to free herself. She also has a scar on her tummy to corroborate this story, in addition to a Luxating Patella which means her kneecap is out of place. Michelle updated me often as she was personally fostering Sissy. She said she was super sweet and loved to talk, but shy. We were worried she needed someplace quiet to relax and come out of her shell. So, we made arrangements for me to come down from NC and take her. I'm moving back to Atlanta in 8 weeks so it seemed like the perfect amount of time for her to finish rehabilitation before being put up for adoption.

The past four days with Sissy have been one for the story books and I wanted to share them with all our supporters:

DAY 1 (Monday 3/28): It's a six hour drive from Atlanta to Durham, NC and during that time I had the kennel door open and my hand resting lightly at the entrance. After 45 minutes on the road, I soon felt my hand being nuzzled and her purring. That night, I set up Sissy's food/water/litterbox and some private comfy areas for her in my room. I let her out since she had been cooped up all day, and she immediately hid. I made the mistake of trying to coax her out from underneath my bed. At one point, I had her cornered underneath a chair and I was talking softly to her with treats in my hand. I made the mistake of reaching out for her and she cowered and screamed. I became worried---My Husky Smokey (may he rest in peace!) cowered the same way when I first got him (he had been abused.) It was pretty much the same reaction. It became obvious that someone somewhere at some point in time had not been nice to this kitten and she was seriously afraid of me!

DAY 2 (Tuesday 3/29): I was determined to be patient this time and let her come to me. Sometime during the night she jumped up on my bed and cuddled between my legs. Still, she was hiding under my bed whenever I was awake. To gain her trust, I slowly inched my hand toward her underneath the bed (over a period of probably 20 minutes) until she could sniff it. She didn't flinch so I just left my hand there. I laughed thinking that Michelle and Lisa would probably love to be flies on the wall! Here I am, laying flat on the floor, with my arm fully outstretched underneath my bed as far as I can manage it. After a minutes of patience, she nuzzled my hand. Success! I was able to do this for the rest of the day. I would call her name, lay down, outstretch my hand under the bed, and she would come to it and cuddle.

DAY 3 (Wednesday 3/30): She slowly made her way from the depths below my bed to the outskirts and would sometimes dart out around the room. I took the same position laying flat on the floor, with an outstretched hand. Each time, she would meet my hand and soon she was nuzzling my hand immediately after I outstretched it. At the end of the day, she finally came out to play with me and was comfortable walking around the room! I was even able to stand up and walk away without her running and hiding!

DAY 4 (Thursday 3/31): Sissy is officially a different kitten than the one I first met. I woke up this morning to her kissing my face. She has meowed all day today whenever she wants attention and will come running when I call her. She is currently laying on my right arm kneading it intensely and purring! Sissy has made herself at home ON TOP of my bed and snuggles non-stop. I think she might be the most snuggly/cuddly kitten I have ever fostered. Seriously! Anytime she wants attention she will literally lay herself on top of my arm and roll around. She also has become very vocal and loves making eye contact. Today, for the first time, she didn't hide when I came into the room. I am still trying to avoid sudden movements, but she has gotten used to me walking around.

Cats are very sensitive creatures, and each one takes a different amount of time to warm up to new people. Sissy's unknown but traumatic past, coupled with the scariness of the shelter, made it so she was very careful before bestowing her trust in me. I had to make it perfectly clear that I was in no way shape or form going to hurt her. She had to get used to my eyes, the sound of my voice, and my movements. In exchange for my patience, I have discovered the most loving little ball of fluff. She has a long way to go before she is confident in herself and in people. Her foot doesn't seem to bother her. Sometimes she even puts pressure on it when she walks causing her to wobble a little! I am SO thankful for Fulton County for contacting us, Michelle for dropping everything to get her, the GHS fans for donating for her medical expenses, and for my parents for not kicking me out of the house when I brought home another kitten!

Thank you to the following people who donated for her care: Linda L. (2x)~Karen A.~Nancy C.~Tonia P.~Marla C. (2x)~Valerie P.~Kimberlee E.~Jesse S.~Tonya S.~Wendy B.~Melanie V.~Nick L.~Wesley and Lindsay F.~Jessica W.~Ed D.~Maria M.~Kate T.~and Best Fit Pet Services!

GHS Love,

Mary & Sissy

Meet Chris!

2011-03-30T16:27:00.016-04:00

For the past year, we have been lucky enough to have Chris on our team fostering for us. He's always willing to help us with odd jobs, run errands, and pretty much anything we need. Chris is also a Marine! He was in Ramadi, Iraq from 2006-2007 and on the Syrian border of Iraq from 2007-2008. He did two deployments of 8 months each as an infantry squad leader in the 3rd battalion 2nd Marines. He's our hero!!! Currently, Chris is working on a degree in Graphic Design and a graphic designer at Collins Digital Imaging. We are so glad to have someone like Chris helping us rescue and foster homeless pets. We are truly grateful for everything he does!

Name: Chris Collins

Location: Atlanta GA (midtown)

How long have you been fostering? Feb. 2010

Why do you foster? I foster because it fills the house with something special, like not only do I get to have dogs, but I get to know im helping them at the same time.

Do you tend to foster any animal or breed? I like all types of dogs, from huskies to chihuahuas I tend to go for the bigger dogs because they need a place sometimes more than the smaller ones.

Who was your favorite/most memorable foster pet and why? The most memorable foster was definitely Rosie the pug. She was hilarious and snored sooo loud I did not think I was ever going to sleep....eventually it became like a noise machine for me.

What have you learned by fostering? I have learned that people really have no clue how bad the homeless animal situation is and some people are virtually impossible to even educate.

Favorite quote/saying? "One original thought is worth a thousand mindless quotings." - Diogenes (greek Philosopher)

Chris with his two current fosters---Garrett and Suze.

Meet Laura!

2011-02-28T15:42:00.000-05:00

People often ask us what it means to be a foster based rescue. Basically, our rescues live in volunteer's homes until they are adopted. This means that the cats and dogs go from the stressors of being abandoned or neglected to a stable home environment. They get used to home life, kids, cats, dogs, and learn basic obedience as well as house/crate training. When they are adopted, they are already used to being in a home!

We're lucky enough to have some great volunteers and foster parents. We can't say thank you to them enough, and we love showing them off to all our fans! Today our spotlight falls on Laura who is an avid rescuer and mother of two! Laura owns Baby Steps which helps women and families through pregnancy and birth. In her spare time, she volunteers with us by fostering dogs rescued from high kill shelters. Her two daughters, Maddie and Grace, are our youngest volunteers who make sure their foster dogs are knowledgeable on how to play and cuddle!

Name: Laura Fields
Location: Powder Springs, GA

How long have you been fostering? My husband, Chad, and I started fostering when we bought our house in 2001. We took a break for a couple of years when we had our daughters (fostering only the random stray, which happened a few times), and started back last year with Georgia Humane Society.

Why do you foster? I foster because I can't stand not to. I have a great fenced yard, a dog who loves to play with other dogs, and kids who really enjoy fostering. I look at the shelter websites with pictures of all the dogs who will probably be put to sleep because nobody wants them, and I just can't NOT foster at least one of them.

Do you tend to foster any animal or breed? I started out fostering shelties, broadened my focus to herding dogs in general, then narrowed it again to Catahoula Leopard Dogs. I still have a very hard time turning away any Catahoula, but since I've been back in rescue I've just been wandering the local shelter with my girls whenever we have foster space. Then we choose a dog together that we all connect with.

Who was your favorite/most memorable foster pet and why? There have been so many, and for different reasons, it's hard to narrow down. My 2nd foster ever was Rusty, a sheltie. I was so in love with him, that I almost decided to keep him and stop fostering. He ended up in a really perfect home, but he was by far the hardest to let go. It was with him that I learned how to love them then let them leave so I could rescue another. We lost one foster to heartworm treatment, and another to cancer. The ones who don't make it always stay with you. Sometimes the new owners stay in touch, and being able to see into your foster dog's new life keeps the bond going. The best example of this for me is my Australian Cattle Dog foster from last year, Topher. His adoption felt fated it was so perfect, and he's well on his way to being a therapy dog. There's nothing better than combining helping dogs with helping people!

What have you learned by fostering? I've learned that love really can change everything. I've had dogs who have been through hell, who had been abused or neglected, but who still had it in them to love people. And I've seen dogs who seemed beyond help either physically or emotionally who have been brought back through the love of a foster mom or dad who was willing to invest the time and patience in them. They're all worth saving, if only enough people would open up their hearts and take them in.

If you could tell the world one thing about animal welfare and rescue what would it be? Please be a responsible pet owner. This means spaying or neutering, making your pet a permanent part of the family, and keeping them safe.

Favorite quote/saying? "He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion." - Unknown

The Story of Diggs - Our Digg Dog

2011-02-27T09:37:00.022-05:00

It was September 2005, right after hurricane Katrina, and I had just returned from spending a week rescuing animals in New Orleans. When I arrived home I announced to Buddy (my husband)that we needed to adopt another dog to make room for the homeless pets filling the shelters all over the south. He reluctantly agreed but was soon excited about adding another family member. I had always wanted a Golden and when we adopted our last dog we had intended to adopt one, but fell in love with Dino a Lab/Golden mix. This time I was determined that we were getting a Golden! We set out on a Sunday afternoon to Golden Retriever Rescue of Atlanta adoption day where we had adopted our Dino. There were what seemed like dozens of dogs, some young, some older and some already had adopters. We walked around looking at the different dogs and all of the sudden there he was: flattened out on the floor like a Seal! It was this 6 month old Chocolate Lab/Mutt dog. I got down on the floor and he started giving me kisses and trying to get in my lap. Buddy and I looked at each other and immediately knew he was going home with us. We talked with the foster mom for a while and she invited us to come to her house so we could see him interact with her dogs and complete the adoption paperwork. She warned us over and over that he had a lot of energy and that he was stubborn, but still very sweet. She knew Diggs needed just the right home or he would be coming back to her. We would soon learn why!

Our other two dogs were initially not happy with our choice! But, within a few days Dino was dragging Diggs around the house with a toy in his mouth. It was very cute! Diggs was into everything and the first week he jumped off the back deck and slightly tore his ACL. We took him to the vet where they quoted us $3000 to fix it or we could just rest him and see if it healed on it's own. We took option two and he healed within a few weeks. Diggs was more like a goat than a dog. He would eat anything that didn't eat him first.... money, remotes, anything too close to the edge of the counter, sticks, rocks, flowers, if you can name it I'm sure Diggs has eaten it. His favorite thing was Papaya and we never got to eat a whole one if he was in the room when we were cutting it. The minute you turned your back he would grab it and out the door he went. It was good for him so we would just laugh and realize it was our fault for not watching him.

So, you can only imagine how he got his name! It was originally Hudson, but it didn't seem to fit his personality. We spent a couple of days trying to decide what to name him and one morning I looked out on the back deck and all of the flower pots had been dug up---I mean all of them! So, it was settled, he was Diggs. Even with all of the destruction and antics, we still loved him and we knew he would eventually grow out of the puppy stage. And no...he never did!

After Katrina, I founded Georgia Humane Society and we started fostering dogs. This was great for Diggs because he loved all other animals. He would play with them no matter their size and he was always gentle even though he was over 100 lbs. He would teach them how to belong to a pack and how to get over being abused with love and kindness. There were many fosters that came through our house in the 5 1/2 years that Diggs was with us and he never failed to welcome each one of them as if they belonged here forever. We will always be grateful for the kindness and patience he showed to other animals no matter what they had been through before coming to our home.

It was late in the evening in October last year and Diggs came in the house limping. We could tell he was in pain and suspected he had torn his ACL again. I would call our vet the next morning and take him in to confirm it. We arrived at the vet and they confirmed that it was his knee so they referred us to a specialist to get x-rays and decide on surgery. We really didn't want Diggs to go through such an invasive procedure and it was going to be a major challenge to keep him down for two months to recover. We had a lot going on at the time and needed to plan for something this major. We have stairs in our house and going down to the back yard. Diggs is not a leash walker, he will drag you down the street, even with one leg not functioning. We decided to move him to the first floor of the house and gate off all of the stairs. We put him on anti-inflammatory medication and started resting him in hopes that it would heal on it's own or at least buy us time while we made a plan for his surgery and recovery. He seemed to get better as the weeks passed but in late January he began to not use his leg at all, it was time to see the specialist. We weren't going to avoid surgery.

We found a vet in Calhoun, GA that could do the surgery and even though it was a 2 1/2 hour drive it was worth the savings. The vet had done this surgery for 25 years so we knew we were in good hands. On February 3rd, me and Diggs drove to Calhoun and I checked him in at the clinic. I would spend the night in a hotel and take him home the next day. I waited by the phone for the call that he was out of surgery and recovering. The call came and it was not what I expected...Diggs had cancer. I couldn't believe what I was hearing and that my 6 year old boy had terminal cancer. The vet asked me to come to the clinic so I could look at the x-rays. I was there in 10 minutes and it was soon obvious that it was true. I asked the vet how long we had and he said 6 months to 1 year. Now, I had to break it to Buddy that our beautiful Diggs was dying. He immediately started researching on the internet for natural and nutritional cures for cancer. We tried everything but nothing was going to save him. I'm glad we didn't know in October, because we were able to enjoy those last few months with him. If we had known then we would have grieved for all of those months. Diggs was like velcro with me everyday after we returned from Calhoun. I was his caretaker and made sure he got his pain meds and was eating what he needed. I could see he was going down hill really fast and I told Buddy to start preparing. On Friday, February 25th we spent our last day with Diggs. I knew he was in severe pain and he stayed under Buddy's desk for most of the day. I kept checking on him to see if he was improving but he wasn't so I called the vet to bring him in. We suspected he might have bloat so they told us to come right away. They took x-rays and within 5 minutes called us in to see what they had found. The cancer was taking over his lungs and there was nothing more we could do for him. He was starting to suffer and we had agreed in the beginning to not allow him to suffer. We made the painful decision to let him go even though we weren't ready. Diggs had always lived his life on his terms and we had to honor him by letting him leave us and have peace. He will always be a huge part of our lives and we will miss him everyday.

Diggs ~ Feb. 2005 - Feb. 2011

Puppies

2011-02-24T19:42:00.010-05:00

Got a call from Michelle and heard that terrible word "hoarder", then puppies, a couple sick with parvo one dead. OK, got the room ready for six week old pups and then off to meet Michelle to pick up my little pups.....oh to my surprise when I saw just how tiny they were. NO WAY these babies are six weeks, they looked to be 3-4 weeks tops. I took a deep breath and was determined I could do this.........well, because these babies are so very strong after two scary weeks I am taking a deep breath because we all made it. They are functioning like 6 week old puppies now free of worms and eating good food. And, I must mention their poop looks really good!

As I sit here with the house quiet and the puppies sleeping in the doggie bed next to me, I think about how dependent on me they are for everything, including picking them the BEST forever home. People always ask me how I can foster and "not keep them all". I usually just say well we find perfect homes, failing to mention all the people we have to weed out because they want to leave them outside, in the dog house of course, or they have a nice little pen and 10 children, 3 dogs and 6 cats. All animals deserve the best, unfortunately, we have failed as a society due mostly to greed to give them that. SAD

Check back with me, I am going to become a real blogger in all my spare time!

New Beginnings

2011-02-19T15:06:00.005-05:00

The Animal Rescue Site is currently holding a contest called "New Beginnings" where adopters can enter stories about their pet. The winning group will win a $3,000 grant!

We currently have a few stories in the running for a grant:

Topher! Foster mom Laura rescued Topher from a high-kill shelter after his elderly owner turned him in. He was adopted by Lindsay and Wes in Virginia where he is now training to become a therapy dog! He is probably one of the nicest dogs we have ever rescued.
Matilda! Matilda, a black puppy, was rescued by GHS from a high-kill shelter with her siblings. They all broke with Parvo and one died. Luckily, Matilda was a fighter! She caught the eye of Karine in Maryland and it was love at first sight!
Peaches! Peaches lived in a feral colony on Georgia Tech's campus. She was starving, and even though she was so wild, we decided to remove her and try to domesticate her. She turned out to be one of the best cats on the planet and lives with Mary's parents in North Carolina.
Lacy! Lacy is our poster child for anti-tethering. She got a tie-out stuck around her leg and freed herself. She was picked by animal control who contacted GHS to rescue her. She had to have her leg amputated and all these horrible experiences didn't weigh her down one bit. She found a new forever home with Coalition to Unchain Dogs volunteer, Ed, and his two other dogs!
Josie! Josie was rescued by GHS from a high-kill shelter. She contracted Parvo and struggled to make it through! Then, she found the best home ever with Valerie who is the owner of Best Fit Pet Services. Valerie and Josie hit it off so well, Valerie has since started volunteering and fostering for us!

We encourage you to click the links above and read about their amazing stories! You can also click "like" and share it on your facebook page. If you adopted a pet from Georgia Humane and would like to enter your story in the contest, you have until February 27th to submit one! Then, the judges will pick their favorites and it will be opened back up to the public to vote. If you submitted a story, please let us know so we can post it on this blog and on Facebook by emailing Mary!

What $1000 Could Do...

2011-02-15T14:30:00.005-05:00

Recently, we have been asking our Facebook friends to vote everyday for us in The Animal Rescue Site Shelter Challenge. We are currently in 4th place in Georgia, and if we move up to 1st we receive $1,000. It may not seem like much, but for the dogs and cats in our program it means everything.

We recently rescued two litters of Daschshund puppies from a hoarder. They were malnourished, underweight, worm infested, and not doing very well. In order to take care of these guys, we have had to buy tons and tons of milk replacer and puppy pads. A thousand dollars would mean we could continue to rescue the animals that need a little extra help.

Here's some of what it costs us to rescue...

Cats and Kittens:
-Spay $55 - $70 including rabies age appropriate
-Feluk/FIV test $20- 30
-Vaccines $5 adults $15 kittens
-De-wormer $5 adults $10 kittens
-Flea meds $5
-This doesn't include URI or Coccidia that can be another $50 - $100 per cat or kitten
-Litter $100 per month for all cats in foster, food is normally free

Dogs and puppies:
-Spay $60- 120 including rabies age appropriate
-Neuter $40 - $100
-HW test over 6 months $20-35
-Dewormer $10 adults $20 puppies
-Flea/HW prevention $10- $50 depending on how long we have them
-Food free for the most part
-Doesn't include HW treatment or parvo which can be from $80- $1000

If we receive this grant, we could use it in so many ways...whether it is treating one dog for heartworms, rescuing/rehabilitating 10 kittens, or rehabilitating these two litters of Doxie puppies! It would mean so much to us to have our fans voting daily for us and sharing it with their facebook friends.

Have you voted today? If not then Click here...

If Only There Were More Caley's...

2011-02-11T17:17:00.012-05:00

As a volutneer run rescue group, Georgia Humane could not operate if it weren't for our amazing volunteers. Our youngest volunteer, Caley, is a shining example of what we hope all teenagers (and adults) should be like! We asked GHS President, Michelle, about Caley and this is what she had to say:

"Caley is one of our high school heroes! She comes to adoptions every Saturday to help walk dogs, clean the adoption center or anything we ask her to do. We really don't ask her, she just jumps in and does whatever she sees is needed. She does all of this on her only weekend day off from school and homework when she could be out doing things with her friends. Which by the way' she has plenty of them! She's been volunteering for us since she was 16 and she just turned 18. Caley has a huge heart for the animals and is one of the sweetest girls I've ever met. We know soon she will be off to college and we are hoping she will stay in Atlanta but wherever she goes I know she will always be helping animals."

Caley comes to our adoption events every Saturday to help us with find our rescues new forever homes. While foster parents talk to potential adopters, Caley watches the dogs and puppies, plays with them, walks them, introduces them to visitors, and answers questions. If that weren't enough, she is always in a great mood and has a contagious smile that ensures our adoption events are always a good time! We want the whole world to know about the amazing things this young woman is doing!

Meet Caley:

Name: Caley Marchesseault
Age: 18
Hobbies: Soccer, reading, snorkeling
How long have you been volunteering with Georgia Humane? 2 1/2 years

Why do you volunteer? I volunteer
because I love animals-especially dogs-and I can't have any of my own because my mom is allergic. Volunteering is my way of giving back to loving animals who deserve a second chance.

What do you do as a volunteer? As a volunteer, I work mostly with the doggies. I walk them (I pick up their "business" as well) and help socialize them by playing with them and giving them lots of love. I keep the GHS adoption binder up-to-date and I occasionally clean the cat room. I have also participated in fundraising events such as the Atlanta Pride Parade and the Adopt-a-thons at Petsmart.

Is there a rescue that stands out? One rescue that I will
never forget is the only one that I have actually seen and helped. Mary told me that there was a feral mommy cat living underneath Starbucks in the Petsmart shopping center. She had 4 or 5 kittens. I asked Mary if I could help rescue them and she said yes! So we sat outside behind Starbucks in the summer heat waiting and waiting with icky cat food, trying to lure the mommy out so we could grab the kittens. It took FOREVER and we rescued all of them but one, who the mommy cat would not let us get. The kittens were feral and when our hands came close they hissed and scratched. Mary socialized them and turned them into fun loving kittens. They all found wonderful homes and I was glad to be apart of it.

What do you want the world to know? I want the world to know that animals deserve to be treated with respect. Rescue groups stand up for abused and neglected animals and give them a voice when they normally wouldn't have anyone to stand up for them.

It means a lot to us to have Caley at adoption events taking care of all the animals. As you can see from the pictures, they adore her as much as we do!

We know there are a billion things the average teenager wants to do on their Saturdays off from school, and we are so thankful Caley chooses to spend those days with us and the animals! If only there were more Caley's, then the world would be a much happier and more compassionate place!

Alpha

2011-02-08T17:37:00.010-05:00

When we tried to rescue Jojo (Old Yeller), we had no idea of the impact he would make on us. Jojo was left to die in a shelter and by the time we got to him there was nothing we could do to ease his pain. We decided then and there that in his honor we would start a fund to rescue pets that are have costly medical issues or are elderly.

Our first rescue in honor of Jojo was Alpha. We got a plea at the end of August from Dekalb County Animal Control about this sweet 8 year old Collie that was in pretty bad shape and running out of time. They had him for about a month, and had treated him for heat exhaustion and kennel cough. No one had come forward to claim him, he was getting overlooked at the shelter surrounded by younger dogs, and hadn't found a rescue. Dekalb feared he wouldn't make it, so we stepped in to help. We went to pick him up and found this poor boy to be extremely emaciated. He weighed a horrifying 27 pounds, his coat was matted, he had horrible heartworms, and was full of internal parasites. Our amazing foster Lisa and her husband Chris decided to open up their home to Alpha and so he became the first of Jojo's legacies.

Alpha struggled in foster care initially. He wouldn't eat, had no energy, and wasn't potty trained. We've always known Lisa was a miracle worker, because every day Alpha made progress and seemed to be coming back to life! Before we knew it his fur had grown back and he had almost doubled in weight going from 27 to 46 lbs!

Lisa writes:

"Alpha came to us not able to walk. If you remember, the shelter had no hope for him and was begging someone to get him out. They thought he was old, but he acts about 4 or 5. Guess we will never know his true age. Now, he LOVES life. He is the best foster story ever!"

The day finally came when Alpha was adopted into a new forever home. We couldn't have found a better one, because Alpha was adopted by Lisa's sister Whitney! Now, Alpha lives happily with the Purinton family. He has a doxie furbrother named Duke and is now happy, healthy, and loved.

In the shelter reality we face today, Alpha didn't have much of a shot at survival. Cast away by a family, he beat the odds in the shelter and wound up getting a second chance at life. It is stories like Alpha's that remind us why we do what we do and keep us focused on rescuing one by one until there are none.

Best Fit Pet Services

2011-02-03T17:21:00.005-05:00

The Georgia Humane Society is proud to partner with such an awesome business like Best Fit Pet Services. Not only do they offer outstanding care for pets, but they support us in our efforts to rescue homeless pets. We've interviewed Best Fit Pet Services founder, Valerie Pegg, who is also a Georgia Humane Society foster parent and adopter!

Best Fit Pet Services:

Founded: January 2009
Services: Pet Sitting, Overnight Visits, Dog Walking and Exercise, Pet Food and Supplies Delivery
Location: Serving Gwinnett County, GA including parts of Lawrenceville, Grayson, Norcross, Suwanee, Berkeley Lake, Duluth, Lilburn, Snellville, Dacula and Buford

How did Best Fit Pet Services come to be? I was working in doggy day cares and kennels and not happy with the lack of control I had over how the dogs were being cared for. I was volunteering with Gwinnett Humane at an event, and that’s where I met Mike and Jasen from Two Dads Pets. They hired me as an independent pet sitter and I was with their company for around a year before I decided to branch off on my own.

How many furry (and feathered?) clients do you have? Approximately 150

Why Best Fit Pet Services? Best Fit Pet Sit Services is a compassionate, loving and fully insured and bonded pet sitting and dog walking service. Depend on us for all of your pet's needs! Proud member of Georgia Network of Professional Pet Sitters Professional United Pet Sitters, and PetSitUSA. Valerie is Pet First Aid and CPR Trained. We have a sincere desire to care for pets and to keep them happy and healthy.

Contact Information: Please see our website for a list of our services and rates at www.bestfitpetsit.com, or email us at info@bestfitpetsit.com or give us a call at 770-363-0827

Meet Valerie Pegg:

How many pets do you have? We have 3 dogs (Gizmo, Jake and Josie), 4 cats (Ajax, Comet, Chili and Nancy) and presently have two foster dogs, Memphis and Benji. We are happy that we found Georgia Humane to volunteer with, they are the best rescue organization that I have ever had the pleasure of working with.

How did you end up in animal care and welfare? My sister, Laura got me interested. I’ve always been a stray magnet, bringing home cats and whatever else I found as a kid. I started volunteering with Atlanta Animal Rescue Friends in 2001 with my sister, fostering dogs and cats. I’ve been fostering on and off since then, now with Georgia Humane. My husband Denny and I also volunteer with Daffy’s Pet Soup Kitchen here in Gwinnett County.

Why is responsible pet ownership important? Responsible pet ownership is important to keep animals out of the shelters and off the streets. To stop dog fighting. To stop backyard breeding. To stop puppy mills. To keep pets from being hit by cars. I could go on and on.

How did you get involved with GHS? My husband and I lost our sweet GSD mix, Sammie, to cancer. We decided after a couple of months of mourning that it was time to look for another pet to adopt in Sammie’s honor. Looking on Petfinder.com, we found our dog, Josie (her name was Missy then) and Georgia Humane are the group who pulled Josie from a shelter, nursed her through parvovirus and then adopted her out to us. They were so kind and laid back and helpful (I could go on here, too) that we decided it was time to get back into fostering a few months after we adopted Josie. We couldn’t foster for any other group than Georgia Humane. What an awesome group of people.

If you could tell the world one thing about animal welfare what would it be? Put yourself in the animal’s “shoes.” Try to think like an animal and see through their eyes. Also, Spay and Neuter your pets and obey the leash laws! Don’t buy pets from puppy stores, Craigslist, Ebay, or any classifieds. Adopt!

Thanks for all you do, Valerie!

The End of 2010

2010-12-31T12:22:00.003-05:00

It's been a crazy year here for GHS. We've struggled with sad situations, but also been so thrilled to help so many homeless pets. We've seen our group change with many new faces coming on board and others going different routes. Change is inevitable in any situation. When I think about what has been accomplished, I am so happy that GHS saved over 1,200 of Georgia's animals this year. Most were from high-kill shelters, some were from owner surrenders, many from hoarding situations, and some just happened to be in the right place at the right time.

Personally, as the year ends I think back to all the adoptions I did and I find lots of comfort knowing the cats I cared for at the adoption center are happy, warm, and loved. I've got their pictures on my computer and every once in a while I will scroll through and it reminds me of the difference I have made. I also have memories that stick out, like poor old Jojo who was left to die at a local shelter. Or sweet Dante that was shot with buckshot and later passed to Parvo. I think of my fellow rescuers marching fearlessly into the homes of hoarders trying to save suffering pets, or our foster parents dealing with some shelters that just frankly would rather euthanize than save the animals.

I try not to dwell, because this past year I've seen so much good in the animal welfare community in Georgia. There are many people that are trying to change the situation by educating the public, enacting low-cost spay/neuter, rescuing, rehabilitating, rehoming, and standing up to those who would rather let our animals perish. I see the good will between fellow rescue groups who are always willing to share supplies, support, and ideas. I see the good will from many local animal controls who work tirelessly to save all the pets that come into their shelters. I see the good will from the public who have always responded when we have an especially dire case where we need funds or support. I look at the GHS facebook page and feel so comforted knowing we have 5,436 people standing with us for a better tomorrow.

This year I'm thankful for many things. I'm really thankful to all the people in Georgia from all different shelters and rescue groups that make it their life to save our pets. I'm so thankful for the lessons taught to me by my fellow rescuers all of whom have instilled in me wisdom that I did not have a year ago.

While there are still hundreds of thousands of Georgia's animals that aren't given a second chance, I know that one at a time we are working to change that. I like to think Georgia is slowly waking up to the reality that our animals depend on us, and that they deserve better.

I welcome 2011, because there are animals out there that need us all and we have the power to help!

GHS Love,
Mary

Our Three R's

2010-11-15T16:36:00.007-05:00

The thing we do best at Georgia Humane is RESCUE, REHABILITATE, and REHOME. We rescue animals from all over Georgia and help them find their new forever homes. Most people don't know how much time/effort/money go into saving these precious lives! GHS is a 100% volunteer run organization!

We Rescue. Our pets either come from high-kill shelters or owner surrenders. We drive all over the state helping to pull animals out of shelters that normally wouldn't have a chance. Whether it's an SOS put out by the shelter or one of our volunteers keeping an eye on their county shelter, we are often working with animal control to rescue animals. We also receive numerous requests from people asking to surrender their pet. Sometimes it is for very good reasons (deployment, illness, etc.) and other times it is frustrating (having a baby, don't want the pet, etc.) We understand life situation's change, but we really believe that when you commit to a pet---you commit for it's entire life! Every once in a while, we just happen to be in the right place at the right time. Take the picture to left---that's Asher! One volunteer, Mary, just happened to be in a parking lot when she noticed tons of people gathered around a car. Asher was trapped in an engine, friendly as can be, but scared to death. Mary was able to rescue him and he has since found his happy ending.

We Rehabilitate. Once we have rescued a cat or dog, we then have to assess its medical and psychological needs. We use foster care homes for every pet that comes into our group. By placing a pet in someones home, they are constantly given love and attention while being observed by our volunteers to determine the best possible home for them. Our foster families can have their rescues anywhere from a day to months at a time! Some pets need more work than others, but the best case scenario is that they need just a few days of TLC before being put up for adoption. Usually, it is a lot more work than that! We often take in dogs that are Heartworm positive. It's extremely expensive to treat! As a no-kill organization, GHS will address any medical concerns. We often have to deal with ear mites, heartworms, flea/ticks, minor behavioral issues, house training, crate training, and basic obedience. In addition, we spay/neuter ALL pets, provide a microchip and flea/tick preventative, and make sure everyone has age-appropriate vaccinations. The vetting, while discounted to us, can still be very expensive. Still, we think most people would rather adopt a healthy and fully vetted pet then having to take an injured or unvaccinated pet and go through the medical steps themselves. Take Lacy for example (see picture to the left.) She had freed herself from what we think was a tether that was wrapped around her leg. It was so badly infected she had to have the leg amputated and was in for some serious surgery and rehabilitation. Even though she had some injuries, we didn't think that she should be given up on. So we were able to rehabilitate her, vaccinate/spay her, and put her up for adoption! Rehabilitation is a crucial step for us in helping our rescued friends.

We Rehome. This is where everything comes together for us! Once our pets are safe, happy, and healthy we place them up for adoption. We maintain an active Petfinder.com account as well as do weekend adoptions on Saturdays from 1-4pm at the Petsmart on Howell Mill Road in Atlanta. Potential adopters find our pets via Petfinder.com, by visiting our adoption center at Petsmart, or coming to our adoption events. We often have out of state adopters and have some rescued pets living as far away as Washington state! We also work with other rescue groups (especially in the Northeast) to do transport. Often times small breed dogs or puppies are in high demand up North where they don't have the issues that the South has. We work with these organizations to transport animals out of Georgia where they would surely be killed after their time was up in a high-kill shelter. All potential adopters fill out our adoption application so we can make sure the pet is a perfect match for the home. It's so rewarding to see our pets living in their new forever homes with families that love them. We often tell people that they are really saving two lives---the pet they adopt and the pet we are able to rescue because they adopt! The picture shows Bradley with his new mom and dad. They had been looking for the right puppy when they spotted him and it was a match made in heaven! Once they adopted a healthy, happy, and fully vetted Bradley, we were able to go out and rescue another little of puppies and start the process all over!

Taking our pets through Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Rehoming is such a great experience. It never gets old! Seeing the transformation of scared and sad to happy and confident is amazing! We are happy to be there to help make families complete and that's why we will continue to Rescue, Rehabilitate, and Rehome!

Another Preventable Tragedy....Dante!

2010-11-01T10:40:00.003-04:00

I haven't blogged in a while but I thought today was a good day to write about this beautiful, loving dog that died because a human failed him.

Dante came to us on October 14, 2010 after arriving at animal control in DeKalb County, covered in buckshot. The rescue coordinator put out an urgent plea for someone to take him and one look at that face was all it took for me. I knew we didn't have a foster home for him so I started calling to find one. Within a few hours we had a plan and Dante would be rescued.

I arrived at the shelter to pick him up and he jumped right in the back seat. He was just happy, go lucky even though he was covered in wounds from the buckshot. We made the hour drive to the vet's office and everyone there fell in love with him. He was examined, vaccinated, heartworm tested and prescribed antibiotics to help clear up his wounds. We went home and got him settled for the night.

Saturday came and he went to his temporary foster home so we could get him ready for surgery to remove the buckshot. Beverly fell in love with him, too and said she would foster him permanently if we needed but we already had a foster home waiting for him. After five days of taking antibiotics he was ready for surgery and I picked him up for the trip to the vet. He had surgery the next morning and everything went much better than expected. There was no buckshot in him and he just needed to let the wounds heal. He was neutered so he would be ready for his new life once the wounds healed. I picked him up from the vet and he greeted me with his wagging tail and sloppy kisses. We went home.

Friday morning I noticed Dante was coughing which is not unusual after surgery and I knew he was taking antibiotics so there was not much worry. Sunday he went to his permanent foster home and he was still coughing so I sent additional antibiotics just in case he was getting kennel cough. He was still eating, drinking and being his happy self. By Wednesday night, Dante had stopped eating completely and was vomiting. Thursday he went to the vet where they diagnosed him with severe URI. Friday morning we picked him up from the foster and took him to our vet where he was diagnosed with Parvo. I was absolutely shocked and couldn't imagine that a dog his age had a puppy disease. Although, I should have realized that since his previous owner hadn't bothered to have him neutered, he probably didn't bother to vaccinate him as a puppy either. I was devastated to say the least but thought he could be treated and would be fine, after all he was an adult. I was wrong.

Since it was a Friday and no one would be at the clinic on the weekend, I chose to treat him at home where he would get 24 hour care and love. I had everything the clinic had to treat him so there was no reason to make he stay by himself.

We spent three days and nights constantly caring for him and giving him love and affection. In the end, he just couldn't fight off the disease so I made the heartbreaking decision to end his suffering on Monday morning.

Dante's life reminds us of the importance of vaccinating puppies so they have immunity to the numerous prevalent diseases in our environment. He also reminds us that neutering will keep a dog from escaping and ending up injured at an animal control shelter. Everything that happened to Dante was preventable but his human choose not to give him the care that he so deserved. As a rescuer, it's hard for me to understand the ignorance that still prevails even with all of the information at people's fingertips.

RIP Dante....I'll see you at the Bridge.

Michelle

Lacy- Our Poster Child for Anti-Tethering

2010-09-14T11:15:00.005-04:00

Lacy has a great attitude now that she is free from her life at the end of a tether. It's hard to imagine what she must have been feeling and thinking with a tether wrapped around her leg and no one to help her. She had not been fed properly and you could see all of her ribs and backbone. When I was told about her by Heard County Animal Control, I asked them to send me a picture so I could see what we were dealing with. I was shocked to see how bad her leg was and knew it was critical that she get to a vet immediately before the infection killed her. I asked Mary (our wonderful volunteer) to set up a Chip In account so we could hopefully get enough donations to pay for the surgery. I immediately started calling local vets which I thought could help her but they all wanted over 1000 dollars to even consider it. I knew Commerce Animal Hospital would give us a better price so I called them next. Dr. Phillips called me back within an hour and said he would do it for half of his normal charge and to bring her the next day. Whew! That was a huge relief and the donations were pouring in for her. I could see that we were going to be able to help her if she could just hold on through the night.

I arrived at the shelter early the next morning so we could make the 2 1/2 hour drive to the hospital. When I met her I was even more shocked to see how bad her leg really was and there was no chance of saving it. She was covered in ticks and looked very frail but her tail was wagging non-stop. That was a good sign because as with people when facing major surgery, it is important to have a good attitude. When we arrived at the hospital they were ready and waiting for her. She didn't meet a stranger in the reception area and when they came to get her, I kissed her good-bye and told her I'd be back.

We had hoped the surgery would be done that day but Dr. Phillips had two emergencies that were more critical than Lacy so she had to wait another day. They felt she was stable enough and could make it until the next day. I received a call from the hospital after her surgery and they reported that Lacy was doing great but should stay in the hospital until Monday to make sure she was stable.
I could hardly wait until Monday so I could go get her and she could start her recovery in a loving foster home. I called the hospital first thing and they said she was ready to go. We were on the road within an hour and arrived to pick her up by noon. She came out with her tail wagging and she knew we had come to take her home. Dogs always know when they are being helped even if they go through a traumatic surgery like Lacy had. She was excited when she first got in the car but quickly laid down on the fluffy comforter we had put in the back for her. She slept for almost the entire trip and seemed content.

When she arrived at my house to pick up a few supplies before going to her foster home, she met my husband Buddy. You can see from the pictures they were instantly bonded!

We made the last 20 minute drive to her foster home and she got to meet all of her new four legged friends. She wasn't sure what to think at first but within an hour she was ready to play. Unfortunately, we can't let her do that right now but once her sutures are removed she will be able to play, play play!

Lacy is young and this will be an easier adjustment for her than it would be for an older dog. She already has the balance figured out and that's half the battle. She will go on to live a long happy life and will never be tied up again.

Lacy is just one example of what happens to dogs that are tied out and left on their own in the world. She was just a pup and was probably excited about something which caused her to get caught up in the tether. There are many dogs that never get the freedom that she has now although she lost her leg to gain her freedom. Dogs that are chained their whole lives, live a life of hell. You can see it on their faces, the defeat, the pain and the wanting for someone to love them enough to let them be free.

We are committed to our relationship with Coalition to Unchain Dogs so we can be a part of the solution for these helpless dogs. I encourage you to volunteer or donate to them. We must all work to stop this brutal practice.

http://www.unchaindogs.net/

Michelle

UPDATE: Lacy has been adopted by Coalition to Unchain Dogs volunteer, Ed! We are so happy! Lacy will have a foster brother and sister and all the toys and treats she could ever want. Such a happy ending!

A day in the life of Alpha!

2010-09-11T08:20:00.004-04:00

Hi all, it's me, Alpha, the precious baby that you all chose to save in memory of Old Yeller/JoJo (my foster mom told me all about it, and how thankful she is for people like you). It is now time for the truth to come out.....I am a dog, I tried to hide it from my foster mom, so she would feel sorry for me and not squirt me when I lifted my leg in the house on her persian rugs and her old furniture, I mean what kind of foster parent wants to have something in the house I can't pee-pee on?? Oh, and my ear hurt so I could not hear, she really felt bad for me when she thought I might be deaf and I got lots of extra attention, but I feel soooo much better and turns out I can hear. I am now on her schedule and NOT my own now, which I have been told is the best thing for me. I must go to the bathroom outside and come when I am called....I love to go for walks with my foster daddy like a real doggie! I LOVE bones, cookies and hanging out in the kitchen when food is cooking. I try to help unload the dishwasher, but not allowed to lick the clean dishes, go figure!! My foster mom says I must get "fixed" SOON, not sure what that means but it does not sound good. I heard this while she was on the phone and one of the small, long things they call Doxies got mad at me and growled because I started doing something I should not, gee I thought I was playing?? Anyway, I am eating great and just loving life now. Oh, here comes my foster daddy, I think I am going for another walk...bye for now. BIG hugs and kisses from me!

Happy Update!

2010-09-08T18:42:00.004-04:00

Liberty and Matilda were rescued from Butts County Animal Control when they were about 8 weeks old. They soon broke with Parvo virus which is extremely deadly when contracted by puppies. In fact, these two little girls had a third sister that didn't make it. Even with agressive treatment, there is about a 50/50 chance a puppy will survive. It's not uncommon to have parvo outbreaks in shelters where there are lots of dogs in a small space and lots of feces.

Michelle fought with them for a couple weeks trying to get them better. Their immune systems were so compromised they broke with ringworm too. They just couldn't catch a break!

Well, its been 8 weeks since we rescued them and we are excited to say that they are happy, healthy, and ready for adoption!!! Michelle fostered them and spent all her energy getting them better and then Donna took over to give her a break. Donna says they love to run around and play and are pretty much house broken!

Matilda and Liberty are 4 month old Lab mix puppies that are now fully vetted, healthy, happy and ready for their new forever homes. If you are interested in adopting them, please contact Michelle at 770-314-7302 or michelle@georgiahumane.org!

Lacy - Injured Puppy

2010-09-07T17:06:00.006-04:00

***We have raised $110 dollars in 15 minutes for Lacy!!! THANK YOU!!!***

Lacy is a 6 month old American Bulldog puppy that came into Heard County Animal Control as a stray. She has a wounded back leg and from the looks of it she was caught/tied somewhere, it got embedded, and then she tried to chew herself free. It's awful!

We are going to pull Lacy ASAP, but are raising money for her funds. It's going to be $500 for surgery including pain medications/antibiotics! Every penny counts---please spread the word and help if you can!

"I hope to make people realize how totally helpless animals are, how dependent on us, trusting as a child must that we be kind and take care of their needs...[they] are an obligation put on us, a responsibility we have no right to negect, nor to violate by cruelty." -James Herriot

Alpha

2010-08-31T19:11:00.002-04:00

Alpha was rescued in memory of Old Yeller on August 25th. I saw a plea out for rescue to save him a few days before. I, as a foster generally do not take in big doggies. This due to the fact that my big girl is intimidated by bigger dogs, and my little male Doxie mix will not tolerate an unaltered male in the house........with all of this taken into consideration, we decided that we wanted to open up our home to this poor guy. As most of you know he is very skinny, has heartworms and every other kind of worm imaginable. Alpha has never been in a home, and wants to "mark" all over hence the diaper. I tell all new fosters not to be alarmed the first few days when the new foster comes into the home and seems unmanageable (and they/me think to themselves -what was I thinking??). This time, I had to take my own advice - at first I had to carry him in and out, pick him up when he fell, put up a ramp to go down the two stairs to the back. He did not eat at all, and obviously needed something. Alpha is now climbing those two steps, gobbling up his food (can only...and not cheap stuff), and going into his crate. What a difference a few days make. He is a precious baby who is making such progress. I believe he might have even gained a pound. Thank you to everyone who contributed monetarily and emotionally to allow this little guy to be saved.

A Fosters Morning

2010-08-27T08:37:00.004-04:00

Friday, August 27th. 5:30 a.m. my furry alarm clock goes off. Maddie and Topher are ready to start the day. Bailey will NOT go outside without her daddy, Vivi needs a little coaxing this morning, too. Carmen is meowing for breakfast and of course wants her litter box cleaned out (whoops, forgot that yesterday).....Alpha was rescued from Dekalb County Animal Control in honor of Old Yeller on Wednesday, August 25th. He has a BAD case of worms, so ALL doggies (7 of them) MUST go in different directions, so they do not get the dreaded worms. Chris has to be in the office by 8'ish, had to help me hold open Alpha's mouth to get the de-wormer in (YUCK). Alpha will NOT eat breakfast yet, don't worry Eddie would love to eat that. Junie and Maddie started scuffling over a toy first thing, and Eddie does not love Alpha (well, you know Alpha is still intact, maybe we have a jealous thing going on......) I believe they will all settle down for their after breakfast nap now, maybe I can wash clothes and clean the back bathroom. Not a dull minute in the Ramig household!!

In Honor of Old Yeller...

2010-08-18T19:23:00.000-04:00

To honor our dear Old Yeller (Jo Jo) we are setting aside a special fund to rescue both cats and dogs that need immediate vet care in order to save their lives. We will rescue animals from high-kill shelters that are in need of immediate vet attention due to disease, injury, or old age. One hundred percent of donations to this fund will go directly to the animals for vetting and expenses for their care. These rescues will help to create a legacy that would make him proud. It is one way to show our support for this poor boy in the hopes that no pet will go without medical attention.

http://georgiahumanesociety.chipin.com/in-honor-of-old-yeller

Rescue Group: Dying Dog Left Without Vet Care - Atlanta News Story - WGCL Atlanta

2010-08-13T18:28:00.000-04:00

Rescue Group: Dying Dog Left Without Vet Care - Atlanta News Story - WGCL Atlanta

My Time at GHS

2010-08-07T22:00:00.000-04:00

My first day with Georgia Humane was October 18, 2008. As a Georgia Tech student, I was away from my pets at home and I was really missing them! I started volunteering with another organization, but soon found it impersonal and wondered why people in rescue could be so apathetic about the animals they were supposed to be saving. After witnessing some of my favorite animals killed because they didn't want to treat them for upper respiratory, I decided I couldn't stay. I knew there was a rescue group at the Petsmart on Howell Mill Road near where I live, so I decided to apply online as a volunteer. I thought it might be better working with a smaller group.

The day I went to be trained at the adoption center was really overwhelming. I learned how to clean the center and interact with the cats. I tried hard to make mental notes of all the things the lady with the blue glasses was saying about the cats and what types of personalities they had. I enjoyed it though, and walked away that first day really excited about being a part of the group. The foster parents knew every detail about their pets and you could tell they genuinely loved and cared for them. It was amazing to hear about the horrible places these fur babies came from, and then see them now happy and whole.

Things got a little hazy at this point. I started off volunteering one day a week just cleaning and socializing, and within a year I realized not only was I cleaning and socializing, but I was doing adoptions, bringing other volunteers on board, managing facebook and other PR things, as well as spending about 5 days a week at the center. Soon, I became whole heartedly invested in the happiness of the cats. I loved seeing new families come together when people finally found their perfect new kitty. I loved talking to the public about cats and their care. I loved having a place to go off campus where I could relax. And most of all, I loved the cats. Each one with a different story and each one so special!

I didn't know anything about the animal rescue world when I started volunteering. Having always had cats in my life, I longed to have them there for comfort while I was at school. Once I realized the suffering of so many animals in the world, something in me awakened. I read every piece of literature I could find on animal shelters and overpopulation. I soon learned the many levels of animal groups like high kill, no kill, animal shelters, or humane societies. I realized that even though the animals well being should be the top concern, that wasn't always the case. It was disheartening to see that people do whats convenient instead of right, and that over 4 million animals die each year because of it.

What I wasn't expecting from GHS was the people I met. I wasn't looking for a family, but I found one. Michelle, GHS President, inspires me daily. She has such a good heart, and always is so strong. Michelle would do ANYTHING to save an animal. She quickly showed me that it is possible to do whats right in the care for animals and will treat animals for parvo, upper respiratory, and heartworms which many rescue groups would rather euthanize. I don't think I have ever met anyone with such a passion for animals. She opened my eyes to more than just the suffering of companion animals, and taught me much about how the world works and how to make it better. Suzanne was the first person I really met and bonded with at GHS. She managed the cat room and fostered as well. Even today, with Suzanne working long hours overnight as an ER nurse, I know that I could call her and she would have an answer for me. When I was first learning the ropes, I used to call her about the most insignificant things (like a cat having a hairball) and she would explain to me everything I needed to do or know.

Once I started doing adoptions with the group on Saturdays, I met Lisa, Amy, and Roxie and got to know them better. Lisa, Amy, and Roxie are three of the nicest, caring, hilarious, and loving women I have ever met. They find the humor in things, and let's face it...with the things they deal with and have seen that is a blessing! Lisa always looked out for me to make sure I was taking care of myself and not just the cats. She often reminded me that I was still a college student and I didn't have to take on the world. It was also always funny to see how attached her foster dogs were to her...they would eye her wherever she was during adoptions and whine if she left their side. She works wonders with abandoned dogs that need TLC! All I knew about Amy and Roxie was that I could always tell which kittens were theirs when they got to the center, because they were always so loving and sweet. Amy was always in a good mood and always willing to help me figure out any cat situations. She took me to my first high kill shelters and showed me the suffering which most of the world spares themselves the sight. Amy is such a happy and loving person, that I'm not surprised all her fosters are just like her. Roxie might be one of the kindest people I have ever met. She is always willing to see the good in people and pets, and would do ANYTHING to save a kitten...even if it means inconveniencing herself. Even after years of rescuing, every life is precious to her and it shows. She treats every pet that comes through her house like a family member and invests so much of herself in them.

As I leave GHS, I am so thankful for the experiences I have had with the wonderful individuals and wonderful pets. It has truly been a life changing experience that has made me more compassionate, more understanding, and more dedicated to helping the world realize that pets are not property, but living, breathing, loving animals that depend on us to survive. So thank you GHS!!! Thank you for making the world a better place one life at a time...

Izzy, the Boston Terrier, tells her story

2010-08-05T22:27:00.003-04:00

Hello Everyone. My name is Izzy. I am an AKC registered Boston Terrier, currently in foster care with the Georgia Humane Society. I feel the need to tell my life story up to this point. About 3 weeks ago I was surrendered with my mate to a rural Georgia animal shelter - one that kills or "euthanizes" (whatever that means). Someone called Ga Humane Society and they came to rescue us. Whew! I thought I would be adopted into a forever home real soon! I'm an AKC registered Boston Terrier right? Adoption didn't turn out to be on my immediate itinerary! I was terrified to be in a loving foster home with a bed, doggie and kitty friends and people who wanted to give me treats, take me for rides and love me! I had been in a kennel all my life and required to turn out litter after litter of puppies for my old "family" to sell. I didn't know how to act or what to do. I'm always a sweet girl though, and I never get angry at anyone or another animal. I am loving, calm and gentle. Then came the Vet visit. That's when I found out I have real trouble. Even though I was a good mommy to all those pups my last owners sold, they never gave me heartworm medicine. A little blood test revealed I am heartworm POSITIVE! I also have a mammary tumor. I heard my foster mom say girl dogs are at high risk for them when they're not spayed at an early age. When GA Humane arranged for me to be spayed, they found I have a heart arrhythmia too! It may be because of my heartworms but I am not sure yet. They are talking about removing my tumor---I can't wait to see how they do that! I'm just going to hang out on the couch and get loved and pampered until they figure all this out. I have seen tears come in my foster mom's eyes as much of this news was given to her. She uses words and phrases like, "Positive, committed, all in, and thankful to GA Humane" so I hope things are going to be okay for all of us.

* Izzy has a long, difficult road ahead. She is strong though, and has "come alive" in our home the past few weeks. She is learning humans are loving and life can be enjoyable! GA Humane is committed to doing everything we humanely can to get Izzy healthy. The costs are staggering. If you would like to donate to Izzy's treatment, it would be so greatly appreciated. I will update as her treatment plan unfolds. Izzy's mate was not heartworm positive and has been accepted by a North American Rescue (he probably already has a forever home).

**If you would like to donate to help us care for Izzy...

-Roxie Patterson (proud foster mom of Izzy)

Meet Roxie!

2010-07-29T12:45:00.003-04:00

Name: Roxie Patterson

How long have you been fostering? ~2 years

Why do you foster? I do not have a lot of money to donate at this time in my life so it is a perfect way for me to help a great cause!

Do you tend to foster any animal or breed? I like puppies! I also love any color, size, age and breed of cats/kittens!

Who was your favorite/most memorable foster pet and why? My first 3 kittens I bottle fed. I flunked as a foster with them and they are mine- Comet, Moon, and Star (see picture.) Moon developed pneumonia around 3 weeks and was a miracle survivor. At around 4 weeks, Star drank some spilled water that had artificial sweetner in it. An amazing vet treated and saved him on a Sunday over a holiday weekend. I had been through so much with them I couldn't give them up. They are around 2 1/2 years old now.

What have you learned by fostering? That you never can tell which animals will appeal to potential forever families. Sometimes the most unlikely mutt or black cat gets a home over fancier competition - I love it!

If you could tell the world one thing about animal welfare and rescue what would it be? That is is not easy but the rewards far outweigh the work...

Favorite quote/saying? It's a familiar one to many that I have changed to be my own with an "animal" addition--- "One hundred years from now, It will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, or how much money I had in the bank, but the world may be a better place because I made a difference in a child's and an animal's life." The author to original is unknown. I will be the author for this one!

My day as a volunteer for GHS

2010-07-28T06:51:00.009-04:00

Day and the life of a volunteer/foster parent...........5:30 a.m. I get up to let the dogs out, my personal doggies out one door, the foster doggies out another (just in case someone does not want to get along, and you know I can't watch 6 or 7 dogs at one time). Ok they are in, breakfast for everyone. Carmen must eat- foster cat in the back bedroom who does not appreciate the animals in the house. Clean litter box. Is that the phone already? Oh no, I forgot to get husbands shirts from the cleaners, must iron him a shirt, of course one of us has to go to work!! Someone pooped on the floor, who did it this time? Hurry, shower, get ready for the dentist....phone again, there is a HOARDER in Riverdale 55 animals ~mental note get to dentist, find GPS to get to the animals that need help, put crates in car ..................skip lunch, gym AND breakfast, gag at the Dentist............Someone coming to pick up their new doggie at my house - make copies, check for poop, spray house in case there is an odor!! Mental note, MUST clean carpet.

Get home, meet my foster dogs new parents, visit, TRY to find foster homes for the animals we retrieved from the hoarder.

Dinner? What's that- send husband to the store for sandwiches AGAIN!! Break up fight between the new foster coming in and the one who thinks he lives here. Well worth it, see above for just a few of the doggies we saved from this terrible hoarder.

BED!!!!!
Don't litter, spay and neuter your critter.

1 Year Anniversary of GHS being in our lives

2010-07-27T23:10:00.015-04:00

It’s hard to believe it’s been a year since the fateful trip to Petsmart where I saw Tootie the Chocolate Dachshund and fell in love at first sight. Meeting Tootie eventually led me to be a foster friend.

I’m Rollo, a senior chihuahua from public shelter. I loves my mommy and daddy. It used to be just the 3 of us. I spent lots of time with Mommy at college, so I very sad when Mommy got job and leaved every morning. All day I watch out the window for her and cry and sometimes have a ceaser (seizure).

That’s when I had a series of good ideas. First idea was to pay Mommy excellent salary to be stay at home Mom. This offer is still on the table, but no luck yet since the exchange rate for Rollodollars is not very good in the US. Next idea was for Daddy to grill me a big juicy steak every morning to cheer me up. Daddy said steak is not Rollo food. I says this is a common misconception. Well, finally I had an idea they appreciated. I said to buy me a friend!

We goed all around town looking for friend. Fulton County, Atlanta Pet, Atlanta Humane. But one day they taked me to buy toy and I saw Tootie with GHS at Petsmart. She was the shortest longest prettiest little dog I ever saw. I went up to that Tootie and licked her right on the face, and I hasn’t stopped since. Ever since I meeted my “Tootsie Roll,” I has best friend to snuggle and play with every day and night. I think everyone should have this kind of friend, especially if they’re like me and has epilepsy or anxiety problem.

Tootsie and I are inseparable. Every time I get back from vet, she so excited. If I go upstairs without her, she cry. When I was in hospital, she was so sad and moping around until I came back. I can’t imagine bedtime without Tootie making bed for 10 minutes, and can’t imagine potty time without her silly dance. But I might not have her If my mommy and daddy hadnt asked how old she was (they thought she was puppy), or hadn’t let me meet her, or hadn’t made a slightly higher one time donation than mine to get healthy, spayed, family-ready dog. We had our arms open to new family member, and she has brought love and fun to our family in ways we never knew possible

Mommy and Daddy loved me and Tooters so much that they decided to be foster family for other dogs. Now we has lots of cute friends all the time and gets to show other lonely dogs the joys of having a snuggle as we help them find a family. Since we has opened our little trio to other animals, our family has more love now than ever before. Mommy and Daddy are even getting married! I love all of the friends I have met but most of all of course I loves my Tooters. Happy anniversary, Tooterpants!

Love,

Rollo

Treating Parvovirus

2010-07-27T12:49:00.008-04:00

Hopefully, most of you have never had the experience of treating a puppy, much less a litter of puppies for Parvo. It's devastating and exhausting with no way of knowing, who, if any will survive. They are in so much pain that they don't want you to even touch them but there is no way around it. First, you must inject them with antibiotics and anti-vomit meds. Next, you poke a huge needle under their skin in the back to give 100 CC's of fluids in order to prevent dehydration. The whole time they are screaming and fighting you.

This time I used a product called ToxiBan which is basically liquid charcoal that coats their intestines to help them heal. This is the nastiest stuff you have ever seen because they hate the taste so the are spitting it out the whole time you are squirting it in their mouth and you have to give them 30 cc's. I think it did help but it is not a fun treatment. After just a few minutes they start vomiting it back up so it gets everywhere. I know I've gone through at least 200 potty pads!!

We use Tamiflu a lot of times but you have to catch it really early otherwise the Tamiflu doesn't do what it needs to do.

It's really amazing that Mathilda actually survived because I didn't start her treatment until she was 3-4 days in and that's hard to fight back from. I'm sure it's why Bianka didn't survive because she was too far gone by the time I got her started. Poor little girl, I felt so helpless and could do anything or tell her why she was dying. So sad!!!

As you can see in this picture (besides the dirty baseboards!) Mathilda has ringworm on all of her feet and her tail. She already had a compromised immune system just from that and I'll start treating it as soon as I'm sure we are completely out of the woods with the Parvo.

The shame of it all is that vaccinations can be purchased on the internet for so cheap and that's all it take to keep them from getting the deadly disease. Of coarse, the main thing that would prevent it would be for people to have their pets spayed and neutered. There is no excuse for people to not do this. Atlanta has done a great job providing low cost spay/neuter and in some cases it's free. Lifeline Animal Project has two locations now, there is Spay Georgia that give low cost certificates, West Mobile Vet covers most of the southwest part of metro. No excuses are available anymore, except people are lazy and then want the tax payers and rescue organizations to fix what they allowed to happen.

We have made a video of the treatment of these three puppies and will post it on YouTube so people can see how it's done and why we must insist on puppy vaccinations until we can stop people from having unwanted litters.

Michelle

Herding dogs as pets

2010-07-23T14:21:00.002-04:00

I'm a new foster home for Georgia Humane, but not new to rescue. For years I've owned and rescued various herding dogs. In the right family, herding dogs make great pets. You'll usually find that even herding dogs who have never been taught to herd anything will exhibit herding behavior. Your pet sheltie or cattle dog may nip at your heels. Your border collie or catahoula may use more eye contact and body language to try to get you to go in the direction he chooses.

Herding dogs are intelligent, active, highly trainable, and loyal. No dog should be left alone in a yard, and that goes double for herding dogs, who thrive on companionship and having a "job." Many people believe herding dogs need a lot of space and should live on a farm or acreage, but that isn't necessarily true. Their personalities vary, and as long as they're kept intellectually stimulated and get plenty of exercise, some can even live in apartments.

Some examples of herding dogs are Shetland sheepdogs, Australian shepherds, Australian cattle dogs, Catahoula leopard dogs, border collies, collies, and German shepherds. Because herding dogs are my special love, watch Georgia Humane Society's rescue list for more herding dogs in the future. Right now, Topher the Australian cattle dog is looking for his forever home; you can find him on Petfinder.

Quote

2010-07-22T08:36:00.003-04:00

"I always get choked up when I think how if we had never "taken 1 more" or "inconvenienced"ourselves for a couple weeks some of these little lives would be completely different. That kitty was well on its way to a life like the poor kitties we saw tonight, covered in fleas and ticks and hoping for a little trash to eat. I'm glad he's safe and will always have a soft place to sleep and good food to eat!" -GHS Foster Mom Amy

This quote was in reference to a litter of kittens we took in even though all our foster homes were full. They arrived in a cardboard box taped shut and were very dehydrated. They are all so loving and sweet! Most have since found happy forever homes, but the two girls are patiently waiting. We received a note from the adopter of the big fluffy black one that really touched us, and Amy conveyed what most of us can't: each life is precious.

Lil Mama and Coalition to Unchain Dogs

2010-07-20T12:43:00.004-04:00

Last Saturday, four GHS volunteers went to the first build in Atlanta for the Coalition to Unchain Dogs! The goals of the organization are to:

Building free fences for people who chain their dogs.
Educating the community about the detrimental effects of chaining on both the dog and the community.
Helping groups around the country to start free-fencing programs and to lobby for legislation to help chained dogs.
Lobbying for legislation which disallows or severely restricts tethering of dogs.

The fence was built in the back yard of a house just a few miles East of the city. The fence took about 3.5 hours to build, and we were lucky to have pros there from North Carolina who could explain to everyone just how to build a fence! Little Mama is a beautiful Pitbull around 3 years old who was rescued in Chicago from the owner's cousins home. T took Lil Mama with him when he moved to Atlanta, but has had to keep her tied to a tree as the landlord doesn't allow dogs in his apartment. The coalition built a huge fence for Mama to run freely and play so that she doesn't have to live the remainder of her days on a small lead. She's got plenty of shade, a big doghouse, and now she can be safely protected. Lil Mama was also spayed and vaccinated!

We are so excited to help this amazing organization! Thanks to Kate, Stacy, Michelle, and Mary for representing GHS! If you would like to get involved with this organization, please contact us or go to their website directly!

Vivianne!

2010-07-20T12:01:00.000-04:00

Georgia Humane Society rescued little Vivianne from Meriwether Animal Control this past Friday. We think she has a flea allergy because she has lots and lots of bald spots. She is also itching like crazy. Just to be safe, our vet did a skin scrape to check for mange mites. It was negative. We went ahead and bathed her in a special medicated puppy shampoo and applied some flea/tick prevention. Hopefully her skin will start to heal and her hair will come back. I am thinking we have at least 3 or 4 weeks until she will be ready to be spayed and posted on Petfinder.com for adoption.

I am just thankful she is so sweet and good natured.

She is only 6 months old so I never expected her to be completly housebroken. She is doing really good though. Vivi always pees outside and ALWAYS poops in the bathroom. What more could I ask?!

-Amy (GHS foster mom)

My new friend, Suze

2010-07-16T21:53:00.010-04:00

By the way, I'm Rollo the Hungry Chihuahua! Once upon a time, I was rescued from a shelter, and now I volunteers for the Humane Society. My friend Mary gived me this password so I can introduce you to some of my friends.

Suze the Husky ("Suzy")

Today, I got a big friend! Sometimes I is too scared to have a big friend, but Suze is the bestest Big Friend I has ever met! She is three years old and I thinks she might be a Husky mixed with German Shepherd. She is full grown but could stand to gain a few pounds. Daddy says that is why she gets a snack and I don't. I says that is body type discrimination. But Suze is so gentle and sweet to me that I loves her soooooo much. She licks me in the nose and on the head.

She does not go around fast inside or play rough. She is happy and friendly to everyone she meets. She is house-trained and spayed and vaccinated and loves to be in the car and go places. She also likes to take a nap on the cool floor.

I loves Suze, and I will be sad when she gets adopted so I can't follow her and lick her anymore, but I hopes more than anything that she will find good family. Suze didn't have such a good family before. She even has a mark on her neck from having chain too tight for too long. She will make a good Mommy or Daddy very, very happy one day soon. If you know of someone who would be good family for Suze, email chris@collinsdigital.com or leslie@collinsdigital.com.

Your Friend,
Rollo

Jonah and Laina!

2010-07-16T10:12:00.006-04:00

Its been almost 6 weeks since Jonah and Laina have been in foster care. Both Jonah and Laina have been adopted by wonderful families and will be leaving to go with them soon. They are so sweet and adorable! They were so fun to foster and we will all miss them so much! They are very good with their potty training! They barley have any accidents. Jonah and Laina have gotten along so well with other animals. They play outside a lot and love playing with their toys. Although we will miss them so much, we are glad to hear that they have found their forever home!

Meet Lisa Ramig!

2010-07-14T17:33:00.008-04:00

Below is an interview with one of Georgia Humane's amazing foster parents and volunteers. Lisa will do anything to save an animal, and has the patience and love to take the most physical or emotionally wounded animal and make them whole again.

Name: Lisa Ramig

How long have you been fostering? 2 Years in August, 2010 for GHS.

Who do your normally foster and why? Although my passion is senior dogs and of course Dachshunds – I have had many types and size dogs through my house, and a few kitties, too.

Who was your favorite/most memorable foster and why? 3 Dachshunds stand out: One female I had to fight with animal control to get her out – she was aggressive and they wanted to put her down without giving her a chance, she turned out to be a wonderful little girl. Of course, Tybee was very precious to me, and I hoped we would be able to save him. Lets NOT forget Pippi (see right), everyone thought she would be my new dog, terrible infections, no hair, wow, what a home she got and the progress she continues to make………..AND, I adore Tucker known to us as Poodle Doodle. Dumped at AC by horrible people because “he was old and had cataracts.”

What have you learned by fostering? It is our goal as a Humane Society and as human beings to eliminate unnecessary euthanasia and prevent pet overpopulation through spaying and neutering. If more people would step up to help in caring for these animals, we could save more!

If you could say one thing to the world, what would it be?

To convince people to rescue and adopt instead of buying or selling animals and to disavow the language and concept of animal ownership.

Lisa's Favorite Quote: “Don’t litter spay and neuter your critter.”

Emily with Attitude!

2010-07-13T12:37:00.002-04:00

It's been a few weeks since I was able to get pictures of Emily but as you can see she has healed nicely and is totally full of herself. She has a get personality and loves to play with all of her foster friends, She also demands attention from her two legged friends. She's completely house trained and doesn't chew on anything unless it belongs to her. It's amazing what a little love and care can do to make a difference for a sick little starving puppy. Thank you Laura for having the heart to pick her up off the road and give her a chance at having a happy new life. Emily will be ready for her new home in a couple of weeks. We want to make sure she is fully healed before we do her spay and start her vaccinations. She's come a long way baby!!

My First "Pull"

2010-07-11T21:07:00.006-04:00

Hi GHS Fans! I'm Mary. I've been volunteering with Georgia Humane Society for the past two years as the adoption center coordinator for their cats. They have been given a "cat room" in the Petsmart on Howell Mill Road. I started off volunteering at another group, but quickly found the dedicated and passionate people at Georgia Humane. I started off volunteering once a week, and soon found myself spending 20-25 hours a week working with their rescue cats and kittens up at the adoption center. Usually how it works is our foster parents "pull" animals to transport into foster homes. After the animals are vetted and happy, they are brought up to me in the adoption center. Saturday, I got to see first hand where the pets come from...Georgia's high kill animal shelters.

Yesterday morning I drove down from Atlanta and met Amy off exit 51 on I-85 just half an hour south of the city. She was taking me to Clayton and Fayette Animal Controls to look at dogs and cats that needed rescuing from "high-kill." That term refers to animal shelters that kill a ridiculously high number of pets that come through their doors due to various reasons: lack of money, resources, space, or even belief that there is a possibility other than death for these companion animals. I use the word "kill" instead of "euthanized" because euthanization by definition refers to animals that are suffering due to extreme untreatable illness. "Putting to sleep" of an adoptable animal is no more than killing. Georgia Humane specializes in rescuing from high kill shelters all over the state, targeting specifically the South and Western parts of Georgia, rehabiltating these animals and giving them lots of love, then placing them in forever homes.

As we drove, winding our way through back roads, I was not prepared for what I was about to see. We pulled up to Clayton County Animal Control where I found dogs covered and standing in their own feces and lacking in food and water. It was hard seeing all the abandoned and suffering dogs knowing that the chances of even a few of them making it out were extremely low. Clayton killed over 78% of their dogs in 2005. I saw puppies, adults, and seniors of every breed, size, and disposition just suffering behind closed doors. The environment was nauseating to say the least. The cats appeared better off, but I noticed over half the kennels were empty. It was puzzling that in 2005 Clayton County Animal Control killed over 90% of their incoming cats and now during kitten season they were seemingly lacking in cats and kittens. They weren't even being given a chance.

Amy has a few foster animals (temporary rescued pets waiting for forever homes) and needed a companion for her latest rescue cat. We pulled a very vocal teenage white long haired girl who looked like she had been through hell and back. As we got back in the car, I was a little shaken and we let our new rescue out of her kennel as she seemed very outgoing. She immediately started a conversation with us (I'd like to think she was venting about all that she had been through) and she gave us many affectionate chirps and head butts. I commented to Amy that all the employees were in the office, and we did not see a single person tending to the horrid conditions in the shelter.

We drove for about 20 minutes until we pulled up to Fayette County Animal Shelter. They are known for being very "rescue" friendly. I was bracing for more heart ache and indeed I did find it, but not exactly what I was expecting. The staff there were nice, the kennels were clean, and the animals all had food and water, but still there was a problem. All their kennels were full including the cat room, and without resources or rescue, the animals would have to be killed to make room for more animals. Again I saw animals of all breeds and ages, and again I thought about how in 2005 a third of the dogs and half of the cats that enetered their shelter were killed. The foster we were pulling kittens for only had room for 2-3 small kittens. We found two small kittens, between 4-5 weeks old, ridiculously underweight, and meowing at us. I looked around at all the cats and kittens, and wanted to take every single one. It was one of the hardest things ever to walk out of that room and leave so many cats and kittens in the balance of life and death. Amy thought one of our fosters had an opening for a smaller dog, so she took a little 5 year old Chihuahua whose time was up. I told myself we were making a difference for the lives of these three, but what about the rest? I was torn on the inside. If people really knew what shelters were like, would they be more responsible? Would they spay/neuter? Rescue? Would they allow for the 4-6 million cats and dogs be killed in this country every year?

I had always seen the pets after rehabilitation. As the coordinator for the cat adoption center, I see the cats when they are whole. By the time I get them, they are social, happy, healthy and ready for new homes. Having spent time in foster care, their emotional and physical wounds have healed. This was my first time really seeing broken, abandoned, hopeless animals marked for death and it's an absolute travesty that we treat helpless animals like pieces of trash.

Update: Jonah and Laina!

2010-07-04T11:37:00.007-04:00

The puppies are almost 11 weeks old! It's hard to believe!! They are progressing nicely with their potty training. They are very energetic and loving. Every night they both get very tired and will fall asleep in your arms. They are getting bigger each day. Both Laina and Jonah get along great with other animals! They are both very curious! Yesterday night, we put the puppies in front of a mirror and they went crazy! When they saw their reflection, they thought it was another puppy. Jonah was barking at himself in the mirror. It was so cute!

Meet Our President!

2010-07-02T08:37:00.007-04:00

Name: Michelle Humphries
Position: President/Founder

How did GHS get started? After Katrina I became aware that animals were being brought to Georgia from the states that were affected by the storm. They were literally killing animals in Georgia to make room for animals to come from other states. I thought to myself "what are they thinking?" So, I started networking with people from around the country via the internet and began transporting dogs to the northern states where the overpopulation problem is much less than in the south.

Why is it so important to work towards a no kill Georgia? It is morally wrong to kill animals for population control. We are lost as a human race if we don't stop destroying our planet and that includes the destruction of non-human animals for our convenience.

How many animals has GHS helped and in what ways? We have saved thousands of lives, through adoption, transport, spay/neuter and education. I don't have an exact number because we have set up transport programs that are still in existence and have not kept track of how many animals are transported each year through those programs.

What has been the most rewarding experience you have had? There's not just one.... what's most rewarding to me are the updates we receive from our adopters. To know we have given an animal that had been thrown away, a second chance is the most rewarding thing to me. It's the only thing that keeps me doing this day in and day out.

What has been one of the hardest experiences you have had? Documenting 300 dogs in a puppy mill that were living in the worst conditions you could ever imagine...

Do you have a favorite foster/rescue story? Alex the little Beagle/Terrier mix that I rescued from a vet clinic in December 2007. He had both forms of mange and had bleeding sores all over him. He was a mess! It took almost a year for him to recover but when he did he was adopted by a wonderful family and now has a happy life.

If you could tell the world one thing what would it be?
Stop killing non-human animals!

What can the general public do to help GHS and help save animals?
Donate and volunteer!!!

For more information on Michelle and the amazing work of GHS please click here.

Rough Day!

2010-06-27T23:11:00.003-04:00

Hi! I'm Colby. I'm a 7 week old Calico and I have 1 sister and 4 brothers. I had a very rough day today. I woke up in my new foster home and I was very scared. My eyes hurt, because they are both infected and I couldn't stop scratching my ears, because of the earmites I am being treated for. See that picture? That's me when GHS came to my rescue. I can't even get my eyes open and I am covered in dirt. I don't feel very good, but I did meet my foster mom today who seems very nice. I like her snuggles. She told me I would never have to live outside again and that she was going to help me feel better. She gave me and my siblings baths which we didn't like at all. We didn't complain though, because it felt so good to get all the flea dirt washed away. Our foster mom said the water was so dirty...what did she expect? We've been rolling around in the mud for weeks! Then, we had to be dewormed. I don't know what that means, but we had to drink this yellow liquid. Our tummies are huge, because of the worms. Foster mommy asked us why we each ate tennis balls. We don't eat tennis balls! They are too big! She thinks she is funny. Not funny. We just are kittens that lived outside. She said we only have to drink the yellow stuff a couple more times and then we will have happy tummies! Then, she put more stuff in my eyes. She said she was sorry they were red and swollen and that soon they will be better. I was so tired after all this that I asked foster mommy if I could take a nap...well I didn't really ask I just crawled on top of her and fell asleep. My brother Chief came and curled up too. She gave us lots of kisses and hugs and told us that soon we would be ready for a new forever home. I don't know what that means, but I do know that I feel lots better now that I am all clean. Now if only Cougar and Champ would stop playing I could get some rest!!!

Wow.

2010-06-26T22:53:00.004-04:00

*L->R: Captain, Champ, Chief, Colby, Creamsicle, Cujo, Cougar*

GHS rescued some gorgeous kittens today...we were asked to help a woman with good intentions, but who had way way way way way too many animals that she could not care for. We started with two of her puppies, then grabbed these guys. We hope to get the adults soon. Some are feral, some are domesticated. Some are indoors, some our outdoors. Their numbers are unknown, but at least fifteen adult cats and potentially more kittens are on site. 6 of the kittens are 7 weeks old, 1 is 3 months old. There are 2 medium hair orange males, 1 long haired orange male, 1 cream long haired/maine coon mail, 1 short hair black male, and 1 calico. Their names are Cougar, Colby, Captain, Chief, Champ, Creamsicle, and Cujo. We're hoping they make a speedy recover from eye infections and ear mites in foster care, so we can get them adopted to other great homes and then go rescue some more! This took a whole group to coordinate: Leslie made the arrangements, Chris did the transport, Mary did initial vet work, and thanks to Donna for fostering!

Kitten Season

2010-06-25T11:29:00.005-04:00

We often reference "kitten season" many are not familiar with this term. Kitten season is a time period from spring to fall where many cats give birth, flooding animal shelters and rescues with homeless kittens. It peaks in the early summer, so we are about to be right at its peak. Basically, the warm weather coincides with female cats' heat cycles. Pregnancy for cats is 8.5 weeks from conception. We place kittens up for adoptions at 8 weeks of age (sometimes they can be pre-adopted!).

How does GHS address kitten season? Both proactively and retroactively.

Proactively---we seek to reduce the number of unwanted cats by actively promoting spay/neuter through support and assistance to low-cost clinics.
Retroactively---we try to rescue as many litters as we can from high-kill shelters, abandonment, and owner surrender. We organize transports to help move animals away from high-kill counties and into areas where they have a better chance of adoption. GHS has a policy where we always rescue the mother with the kittens. Many times the mothers will be instantly killed once their kittens have been adopted or removed.

Kitten season puts a huge strain on us. Our adoption center is jammed packed with kittens, our fosters are full, and we receive calls and emails about hundreds of kittens we simply cannot rescue. It's tough knowing you can't save them all and that the majority will not make it. The lack of resource, space, and money to take care of kittens during this time is so stretched all across the country, many kittens are killed without even given a chance.

It's hurts adult cats too, because they are often overlooked by potential adopters when there are kittens are around. Many people would rather rescue a kitten, even though they require much more training and attention. It's easier for most organizations to find home for kittens rather than adults, and the adult cats suffer for it. Luckily, GHS rotates our adult cats in and out of foster care so they don't get overwhelemed at our adoption center. At the first sign of stress, we take them back to a love home to give them a break and hope we can get them adopted via the internet!

The risk of illness often increases during this time. Crowded kennels means that disease can spread almost instantaneously. The biggest problem is upper respiratory infections. They are easy to treat and have an extremely high survival rate, but they cost money and time and most shelters are not willing to put forth that effort. As a complete no-kill organization, GHS will do everything it takes to save a cat or kitten with an upper respiratory infection and we have never killed an animal because of it. We've had kittens that have been sick with months and incurred hundreds of dollars in vet bills, but that is NO reason for killing.

How can you help the kittens and cats during this stressful time?

GET INVOLVED! We are in desperate need of foster parents. GHS will pay for all food/litter, vet work, and care. We just need loving homes! For the application please click HERE!
VOLUNTEER! We always need volunteers to clean our adoption center and socialize the cats/kittens there. The requirement is 18 years of age, dedication to the kitties, and a committment of one day a week (2 hour shift). If this commitment doesn't work, we are always willing to work with you!
SPAY AND NEUTER. Even if your cat is indoors...once your kitten is as young as 8 weeks old they can be safely altered. Most kittens are "accidental" births. There are low cost clinics in Georgia that you can find by clicking HERE.
DONATE. If you cannot donate time, donate supplies or money. We are always in need of kitten food, litter, litterboxes, beds, and toys. Any money donated goes towards vet work. For every cat or kitten we can vet and rescue, we can use that donation to go into another high kill shelter and rehabilitate another needy kitty. Every penny counts!
ADOPT! We love pairing families with their perfect kitty! At any given time we have someone for everyone...purebred, declawed by previous owner, kitten, adult, laid back, social, great with kids, loves dogs, etc.

The sad truth is that many cats and kittens will be euthanized (killed) in shelters to make room for the kittens they know are coming in. It's heart breaking to know that so many kittens will be brought into this world only to die, because we as a species don't care enough to do something about it.

We are always so happy to find great new homes for our fur babies. However, with the economy being like it is we have seen an increase in owner surrenders and a decrease in adoptions. It's tough right now. We have 16 kittens at our adoption center, and many many more in foster care. Not to mention the hundreds upon hundreds trying to hold on in the streets or the high-kill shelters!

Please...spay or neuter your pet. Millions are dying and everyone needs to do their part to STOP THE KILLING!

Adoption Event

2010-06-24T00:11:00.004-04:00

This past Saturday, we went to Suwanee to the Goddard School for an adoption event sponsored by SPOT society. While we didn't do any adoptions, it was nice for our canine friends to get some fresh air. SPOT society is a great organization!

It stands for "Stopping Pet Overpopulation Together." They are an alliance of animal lovers, dog/cat rescuers and veterinarians working together to reduce the number of animals impounded and exterminated in Atlanta area shelters by:

• funding and providing low to no cost spay/neuters for disadvantaged residents of the metro area - targeted geographical areas for spay/neuter programs include the metro Atlanta area and rural communities with no low-cost spay/neuter resources.

• providing community education/counseling services to individuals regarding the effects of pet overpopulation on the community, the benefits of spay/neuter, tenets of responsible pet guardianship and the importance of pet identification

• promoting companion animal adoption.

For more information on SPOT society please click HERE.

Just Call Me Mr. Mom

2010-06-22T18:55:00.003-04:00

This is Conner. Conner is a 4 month old kitten who has taken on the role of "older brother" to all our younger kittens at the adoption center. Apparently, that wasn't enough, as now all the kittens like to suckle on Conner right after dinner and before bed. He doesn't even care. Check out how wet his tummy is after being Mr. Mom! We have been careful to make sure this is not a repetitive or harming behavior, and has only happened a couple times. Kittens and adults do this when they feel safe and content. It is funny though to see a group of 8 kittens on top of each other purring and kneading. A few just took it the extra mile and decided Conner could be surrogate mom!

Jonah and Laina!

2010-06-22T08:29:00.014-04:00

Jonah and Laina are two new puppies. They are currently nine weeks old. They will be ready for adoption after they are spayed and neutered, which is about three weeks. Jonah is the boy and is bigger than the girl, Laina. Jonah is mostly grey with some brown on him. Laina is grey with white and brown markings. They get along well with other dogs and cats. They play non stop together. Every time I see them sleeping, they are right next to each other! I am potty training them right now, and they are getting the hang of it. These puppies can't get any cuter! We are enjoying our time fostering Jonah and Laina!

Emily Going To Meet Some New Furry Friends!

2010-06-21T11:34:00.002-04:00

Emily is finally ready to go to her new foster home today! She is so lonely and needs some friends to play with her. She is doing very well and seems to be clear of the mange. She still has a lot of hair loss but all of her sores have healed and her skin looks good. Emily has been a trooper through all of her treatment and continues to be a sweet little girl. She is very excited to meet her new playmates. I won't be able to update her as often from her new foster home because this foster doesn't have a computer. I will post about her as much as I can for those following her story. She still has some recovery but we have gotten her through the worst of it. Stay tuned.....

Awesome video!

2010-06-21T09:32:00.000-04:00

Emily Update!

2010-06-16T11:52:00.002-04:00

Emily is finally showing signs that she's feeling better! She's playing with her toys and is much more active this morning. She ate all of her breakfast and is exploring her space instead of getting back in her bed to continue scratching. The tips of her ears are almost healed and I can see signs of healing on her legs as well. I will be giving her a medicated bath later today and that should help with the flaking skin. She hated the first bath so I decided to wait a few days to give her another one since it stressed her out so bad the first time.

Emily continues to be a sweet little girl and is so well behaved. I know it's hard on her being alone most of the day and I feel terrible about it. There is no other choice until we get rid of the mites because I can't take a chance of spreading it through my house. That's one of the bad things about sarcoptic mange but the good thing is that it's easier to treat than demodex. I do know she's in a better situation than being on the street suffering and her time alone will only be temporary. Once we get her healed she will go to another foster home where she'll have other puppies to play with her. She will need that socialization to learn how to interact with other dogs. Someone is going to be very lucky to have her as a member of their family!

More updates to come......

Feral Kittens

2010-06-15T20:01:00.006-04:00

Almost four weeks ago, two of our volunteers (Caley and Mary) found out that a feral mom was raising her kittens behind the Starbucks on Howell Mill Road. Basically, connecting the stores was a small drain about half a foot wide and 2 feet deep. Mom is a huge long haired black cat with bright piercing orange eyes. In order to get to the kittens, Mary and Caley had to reach in and "scruff" the kittens and quickly pull them out before they ran and hid back underneath the store and before Mommy kitty got mad. They couldn't see really what they are doing and we are all very impressed that these girls made such an effort to rescue these kitties! The kittens were about 5 weeks old and just starting to play so they were pretty oblivious to the girls. They were able to get three out of the four kittens. The mother has since been guarding kitten number four and has taught it to be very alert and avoident of humans. Caley and Mary continue to check on them, feed them, and we hope to get the mother spayed. The other three, however, have now found themselves in foster care with me. They started out scared, hissing, spitting, and pretty wild. With four weeks of patience, love, wet food, and nurturing they have become 100 percent domesticated. As I write this, Xena is curled up on my shoulder kissing my neck. Zeus and Electra are curled up in my lap. It's amazing to see them start off so vulnerable and scared and then transform into happy, confident, and playful kittens. These kittens were weaned in less than a day, and mastered the litter box without any accidents. At first, I wasn't able to tell them apart. Now, they all have such different personalities!

Xena: She is like a puppy. She rolls over on her back when she wants you to rub her belly, and meows at you when she wants attention.
Electra: She is extremely laid back and likes to sleep on my pillow with me. She likes to watch her siblings play and loves the laser pointer.
Zeus: I thought Zeus was a boy until yesterday. He is the shyest, but has the loudest purr which he uses non stop whenever you touch him or scratch his head. He is also extremely handsome and has gorgeous eyes.

Working with these feral kittens has taught me to be patient, to slow down, and to realize that a little love can go a long way. I am going to be so happy when these guys find their new forever homes, knowing that they probably wouldn't have made it if left in the wild. But, I am also going to be sad seeing my new friends go. Luckily, I can fill that void with a new litter of kittens who desperately need rescuing.

***Do not attempt to domesticate feral kittens unless you research it and have the time...please contact a rescue group for help. For more information on feral kittens please click HERE!

2010-06-14T13:39:00.002-04:00

Poor little Emily! She's such a good girl and so tolerant of all I have to do to her for her treatment. She hates the dress but it helps to keep her from digging her nails into her skin when she's scratching. She seems a little better today but she's got miles to go before we have her completely well. She's eating good and has finally learned to use the potty pads (thankfully). All of the stuff you can see on her bed is from the skin flaking off. So, sad that she was allowed to get in this condition. Just wanted to update those who are following her progress. I'll write more later in the week.

Hero Mamma

2010-06-13T22:29:00.003-04:00

I finally got to meet our "hero momma." Jolie is an 8 month old tabby/manx mix who is as gorgeous as they come. Seven weeks ago, she found herself living outside with her two new born boys. GHS was able to rescue them all and even hoped that Jolie would serve as a surrogate mommy to four kittens we found in the woods. Instantly, Jolie was raising 6 kittens which is definitely not an easy job. After many many weeks in foster care, Jolie was ready to be spayed and put up for adoption. Normally, when we get mothers who have just had kittens and been spayed they are pretty stressed. It usually takes them a couple days to warm up to the adoption center. On Saturday afternoon, I was planning on opening her travel kennel and letting her take her time getting familiar with our adoption center. To my surprise, I was greeted warmly by a bright eyed Momma who wanted to be picked up and held. She gave me some happy purrs and snuggled into my arms. Today, as I was working with her and the kittens, she head butted me a few times before cuddling against me and gently licking her kittens as they walked by. When I thought she was asleep, I went into the other room to start cleaning. She followed me and gave me a few happy chirps and weaved in between my legs. She's a great conversationalist! Jolie, as it turns out, is a very happy girl who loves people and loves her kittens dearly. I forget that she is really a teenage kitten herself and you would never know she hasn't had the easiest of lives so far. I already feel so connected to this little girl who is loving, playful, sweet, talkative, and our hero. I know Jolie will find her forever home soon, and then she can spend the rest of her life being loved and pampered like she deserves!

Emily

2010-06-13T09:37:00.003-04:00

Emily was rescued by Laura Fields on the day Laura and her husband Chad were to become foster's for GHS. She was sitting on the side of the road, covered in what Laura knew was most likely mange. Laura knew she had to pick her up or she would be hit by a car or starve to death living on the streets.

We took her to the vet on Saturday and they confirmed she had sarcoptic mange with a secondary skin infection due to scratching and biting herself from the itching. Mange can be deadly if it's left untreated so Emily was very lucky that Laura found her when she did.

Emily is an extremely good puppy! She didn't cry at all her first night with us even though she was alone in our bathroom and miserable from the itching. I gave her a bath with medicated shampoo (which she hated) when we arrived home and gave her three different kinds of medication. She took it all in stride but I knew she was depressed. When I got up this morning I could see that she hadn't eaten any of her food last night so I pulled out a can of good puppy food. She perked right up when she smelled the food and ate every last bite of it. She took her meds. and laid back down on her bed for a rest. Hopefully, by tomorrow she will be feeling a lot better since it will be her third day of treatment. I'll keep updating on her progress.....

Hollis the Beagle gets a home!

2010-06-11T13:24:00.003-04:00

It was a Saturday, almost 3 weeks ago that Hollis came into my life. I was whizzing down a busy highway, taking my own sick cat to an emergency Vet. and there she was! A scared and confused girl -less than 3 feet from the road! All kind of thoughts ran through my head...I had a sick cat I had to get to the Vet and I already have a foster dog at home and 9 foster cats! It only took me a split second to swing the car around. I held my breath wondering if she would even come to me. I threw open the car door and Hollis hopped in! It was obvious that Hollis had recently been pregnant and that's why someone had dumped her. The fact that I share this earth with someone that could throw away a loving and good companion like Hollis, makes me sick! Like a miracle Hollis was a young and healthy girl. She was heartworm negative and came through all her "Vetting" with flying colors! Undaunted by the way the world had treated her to this point, she was a dear! She loved every child, cat, and other dog she has met over the last 3 weeks. Just a few hours ago, I delivered Hollis to her new WONDERFUL home! She will be a very spoiled and loved companion. Her new Dad even stayed home from work today to meet and greet her! Hollis, you've come a long way baby! I am better for having had you come into my life!

P.S. The cat is fine too!

2010-06-11T10:29:00.000-04:00

Asher's Story

2010-06-10T15:01:00.000-04:00

On Sunday 6/11 one of our volunteers was doing a cleaning and socializing shift at our adoption center when the Petsmart Manager told her a kitten was trapped under someones car. She went outside to find about 20 people hovered around a car, some with boxes, some with blankets, some wearing gloves all trying to get this kitten. Our volunteer asked the car owner to open her hood, and within seconds she had scruffed this little kitten and quickly tried to calm the visibly upset little guy. He was covered in oil, his fur seeming to be a dark gray color, and he was covered in fleas. He seemed to be somewhat in shock and was desperately trying to free himself from her grip. After giving him an hour to relax, we gave him a bath. The sink was FULL of dirty brown water. After a good meal and a nice grooming, the little kitten turned out to be a beautiful Blue Point Siamese kitten around 10 weeks. He was very sweet, and gave excellent snuggles. We were relieved he wasn't feral as we have 8 feral kittens we are domesticating. We named him Asher. He was in foster care with Amy, who said he was very talkative. Within a day of putting him online, he was adopted by a great new family!

-Mary

2010-04-04T16:55:00.000-04:00

Jenkins!!!

2010-04-04T16:46:00.003-04:00

Meet Jenkins...He is a GHS favorite! He has been with us for a while now, simply because Pits are harder to adopt out. He really is the sweetest, nicest, and most loving dog. He is extremely smart and very strong! All our volunteers love him. He often rolls over on his back when he wants us to give him a belly rub, and Jenkins has never met a stranger!!!

Handsome Jenkins is a young (1-2 year) Pitbull (65 lbs) who was dumped on a farm as a skinny frightened dog. He wore an old ragged collar and a choke chain that almost had to be cut off (obviously, he had grown in to these old collars). The people who took him in did not want a dog and determined to take him to their very remote county "pound" where he would have been KILLED or worse: adopted, then possibly chained up, bred, and/or used in fighting. A foster home took him and he is in great shape now. Jenkins loves the company of many of the other dogs in the foster home. He listens well, routinely comes when called, and is easily corrected w/a firm "no". He has even indicated he would do well w/kitties. Jenkins is neutered, vaccinated, heartworm neg., and microchipped. Lots really GOOD to say about this very nice dog! For more information about Jenkins, contact veggiebev@bellsouth.net!

Animal Welfare News?

2010-04-03T17:07:00.003-04:00

Lots of people have asked us how to keep up with news in the animal welfare world...well, we have discovered some sites for you that explore news regarding animal welfare, animal rights, cats/dogs, other pets, non-domesticated animals, and other general happenings! So no matter what your interest or beliefs are you can get a better picture of what is going on in the world, we have listed them for you below! If you have any others news sources you would like to submit please comment on this post. Thanks!

http://animals.change.org/
http://www.humanesociety.org/news/
http://animalwelfareinstitute.blogspot.com/
http://www.animalwelfareapproved.org/about/news/
http://www.thenokillnation.com/

***The views reflected on these pages do not represent those of the Georgia Humane Society

2010-04-01T10:24:00.005-04:00

Tybee

2010-03-31T12:57:00.002-04:00

Tybee is our black and tan mini purebred Doxie picked up from Coweta County by AC. He is probably just under 2 years old. He is paralyzed in his back two legs, and we are not sure if he is a surgery candidate. There is an experimental program at UGA and we are desperately trying to get him into it! In order to get him healthy and ready, we are trying to raise funds to remove a tumor he has on his shoulder, blood work, X-Rays which is all needed for the UGA study!

GHS purchased his wheelchair, which he is still working on. He can do it, just does NOT love it! It has made him mobile though! He gets along with everyone and he is a sweetie. He is the nicest little guy you could ever imagine. He lets me do anything to him, as I have to extract his bladder several times a day, treat his wounds, etc...He gives kisses, but he does not wag his tail, which one day we hope he can do!

This is a picture of him in his stroller which I use to help him get around!

-Lisa Ramig, GHS Foster Mom

Pet Spotlight

2010-03-31T09:20:00.001-04:00

LUCY LU: Beagle Mix

AGE: 16 Weeks

HISTORY: Rescued from a high kill rural Georgia shelter with her sister who has since been adopted.

OTHER: Crate trained, working on house breaking.

FOSTER MOM: Donna – 770-927-9725 lisa@georgiahumane.org

ADOPTION DONATION: $250.00

Lucy Lu is the SWEETEST little girl who loves to play and gets along with everyone (cats, dogs, kids!) This sweet little girl will make a GREAT companion! At adoptions she sat quietly in the lap of a girl who was only 2 and a half. She really is super sweet and just wants some love! Lucy Lu has been spayed, vaccinated, de-wormed, given flea and heartworm prevention and is microchipped. If you are interested in adopting Lucy Lu, please go to www.georgiahumane.org for an application.

NAME: Nike

AGE: ~5 months (almost!)

HISTORY: Nike and his mom/sisters were surrendered to GHS from a bad situation!

OTHER: Nike is litter box trained and LOVES All dogs, cats, and kids! (even birds and fishies!)

FOR MORE

INFO: Mary 919-824-4960 mpiantados3@gatech.edu

ADOPTION DONATION: $150.00

Nike is an AWESOME kitten. He enjoys being rocked like a baby or chasing toys. He is fun, loving, spunky, and cute. He is full of energy, playful, and very social so he needs a home with another fun animal (cat or dog!)! Nike is also very sweet and comes when you call him (how rare!) and also takes breaks while he is playing to check in with you for a good head scratch…he really is a darling boy! We are currently working on leash training with Nike and it is going great...wouldn't you like a cat you can walk!? Nike is at the adoption center at the Petsmart on Howell Mill Road. His adoption Donation includes all vetting for a full year (neuter/microchip/rabies/kittenvaccines/dewormed/flea-tick preventative/and lots of TLC!)

Blog!

2010-03-29T11:51:00.001-04:00

The Georgia Humane Society is happy to launch our new blog to make it easier to keep up with all our news, updates, pets, and work.